Blue or Green?
by rubygrapefruit
Summary: Sakura joined ANBU to get away. With her partner at her back she felt stronger than ever, ready to take on anything. If only she wasn't slightly obsessed with him and knew who he really was.
1. Part One

Her hidden figure slowly crept along the ceiling leaving only a small shimmer in the air to indicate her passing. She was steadily making her way towards her target's quarters, her fingers faintly emitting just enough chakra to keep her stabilized along the celling.

Every couple of minutes a guard patrolling the hall would pass under her. She knew they couldn't sense her, and even if one of them happened to glance up, all they would see would be a plain ceiling, ANBU's specialty shadow enhancing justu ensured that.

As Sakura turned the final the corner, she noted the two guards standing in front of her target's bedroom and inwardly sighed. She wished she could just kill them and be done with it, but her missions were always _leave no evidence of foul play_ and two dead guards was the exact opposite of that.

She turned around and gently shuffled back down the dimly lit hall only pausing slightly whenever a guard appeared beneath her.

This Crime Lord was quite smart. Her targets room was only accessible through that door. She had previously scouted the outside of the compound hoping to find window access and had been severely disappointed. After double and triple checking that there had been no hidden windows, she had eventually settled on checking out the inside of the compound. Her last hope had been an unguarded door, so that she could easily sneak in. Unfortunately, that had not been the case and she was now going to have to gain access the old fashion way. Sadly, this also meant that this would no longer be an easy mission.

When she reached the back entrance of the compound, reserved only for servants, she silently dropped to the ground and slipped out the door. The two guards on duty were both too drunk to notice her dark figure creep into the shadows of the woods beyond. She made sure to keep to the trees while she slowly but surely edged her way away from the compound.

It was only when the lights of the large house were but small flickers in the distance did she break out into a full run. Finally letting go of her shadow enhancing jutsu she re-appeared in the forest startling a few rodents who quickly scurried away. Her feet barely touched the ground as she left no trail, going back a couple of times and looping around just to be safe.

A mile away from the compound, she slowed back to a light jog and crunched her shoes in the dead leaves that littered the ground. Opening her mouth, she sang a couple of bird-like notes and paused, straining her ears to wait for the reply. It came not 30 seconds later, and she made her way towards the sound.

Crouched on the fourth branch of a large oak tree Tiger stared down and watched her approach.

 _All clear?_ She signed now that he could see her.

 _All clear._

"You're back soon. Are you done already?" He asked when she leapt up onto the tree and sat down next to him.

Tiger was, for all intents and purposes, her guard. She was the one who snuck in and killed the targets, while his job was to watch her back. He had been her partner from the very beginning, and she trusted him with her life.

"No." She groaned, "We have to do plan B."

"Nice."

If she could see his face, she knew he would be smiling at her with that gleeful glint in his eye. He knew she hated plan B, and because she hated it, he loved it. Plan B also meant that he would be doing more than just sitting in a tree a mile away waiting for something bad to happen.

She reached behind him on the tree and grabbed her travel pack. Rummaging through it she finally pulled out a sealing scroll. Unrolling the scroll onto her thigh she pressed her palm into the middle of the circular sealing pattern and allowed her chakra to flow into the paper. Out fell a low-cut silk white nightie and a blue silk robe with embroidered flowers.

"New outfit?" Tiger said while pulling out a scroll of his own.

"Shut up Tiger." She teased.

She jumped down from the tree and started to peel off her ANBU armor. Once she was fully stripped, she shimmied into the nightie and tied the robe around her waist. She knew a lot of shinobi who would feel naked without any weapons. Yet, for her it was only a minor irritant. This was why she was tasked with these missions; her hands were the weapons.

She took off her Falcon mask and undid her long blond braid, letting it fall in waves past her shoulders. Even without the mask though, no one would recognize her. When she went on missions ANBU provided her with a special hair dye that she used on her light pink hair. With her dark blue contact lenses and heavy cosmetics, she looked like a completely different person. If Tiger ever recognized her for who she really was, he didn't let on.

She didn't know who he was either. She was sure he also used ANBU's feature distortion services, probably contact lenses and hair dye like her at the minimum. It all depended on how recognizable you were, and Sakura Haruno was very recognizable.

As _Asa_ though, Sakura found herself very alluring. Even in a world were women could secretly be killers, men still had a soft spot for attractive women. So, like every other kunoichi, her disguise was exactly that. With blond hair and blue eyes men tripped over themselves to get her attention, and if a crime ever got connected back to her Asa disguise, well, blue eyes and long blond hair is not exactly an uncommon combination.

When she turned back towards Tiger, he was ready as well. With his dark brown shaggy hair, piercing green eyes and tan skin, he was breathtaking.

She was a high-class hooker and he was her rich care-taker trying to gain the Crime Lord's favour by offering her as a gift to his young son.

This was plan B and it _always_ worked.

Men were so predictable. They never refused _free_ and _easy_ women, no matter the situation. Granted, their targets had always been civilians and low-level shinobi, who happen to be much less suspicious than the Elite.

"Ready my sweet?" Tiger asked, already in character. He flashed her a dazzling smile and her heart melted.

It was only recently that Sakura had come to terms with her inappropriate school-girl crush. When they first started to work together things had been strained. She had always been used to having to hold her own and work off of her own merit. Having been on a team with both Naruto and Sasuke, who had both had better things to do than look after her, she had learned to take care of herself. So, when she found out that Tiger was supposed to do her fighting for her, well, she had been positively livid. She had not wanted to have to rely on a _man_ to fight her battles.

Eventually, through training together and missions she had grown to really admire the man and she had developed quite the fantasy. She loved the way his body moved when he fought, how well their styles worked together, and how easy and comfortable their relationship now was after two long years.

Her admiration only became a full-blown crush when they got ambushed on their way back from a mission. Fighting together, back-to-back, had been an inspiring experience. Healing Tiger afterwards had been strangely intimate, like no other healing she had ever done. Now, whenever Tiger had to fight, inwardly Sakura swooned because she knew _he_ was fighting for _her._

"Yes," she groaned through her teeth. Tiger just gave her a look and his lip twitched up slightly to tell her he was holding back a grin. Sighing she continued, "Let's just go…"

She could never tell him how she felt. Though relationships between partners and other ANBU members were discouraged, they weren't forbidden. It was quite common, in fact, for partners to find comfort in each other during dangerous stressful times. But a true relationship, she could never have that with him. It was forbidden to tell another ANBU your true identity and though she trusted him with her life, she could never become involved with someone else without knowing who they _really_ were.

Together they made their way to the main road and approached the compound like regular civilians. Even though it was almost midnight, the fact that they were coming now was not unusual. Hookers were, after-all, night-time workers, so this sort of arrangement usually occurred around this time of night anyways.

"So, Asa…" Tiger started, glancing down at her while he stretched his arms behind his back, treading his fingers together, and resting them against his neck, "Where'd you get those new clothes?" He winked and gave her a sly smile.

She knew this was part of his character, but when he looked at her like that, she wished they could ditch the mission and go find a tree to break.

"My last client was _very_ generous and made me promise to get a white nightie." She said with false cheerfulness, twirling her hair in her finger and looking up at him through her lashes as they continued to walk down the path.

"White, huh?" He mused with his finger on his mouth, "I think red would look _way_ better on you."

Looking up at him, her gaze caught on his lips as he subconsciously wet them with his tongue. Catching herself she quickly looked away.

"Really? Why do you think that?" She asked fighting the blush that threatened to erupt across her face from the thoughts her mind had concocted about his sensual mouth.

"Red's sexy you see…"

Reigning in her dirty mind she put on a teasing face and looked back up at him.

His eyes shinned with a playful glitter and his smile grew even wider as she pouted, "I thought I was already sexy Hiro. Don't you think so?"

For as long as she could remember they had played this flirtatious game. Yet, she could never tell if it was just part of the character for him or if he was really flirting with her.

Humming Tiger looked up at the canopy of trees above them, eyes lost in thought. "You know what." He murmured at last, his voice flat, all playfulness gone, "I don't think I would want anyone to see you in red."

Her stomach fluttered at the implications of his words. Speechless, she could only stare at him and wonder if he truly meant that.

When he looked back down moments later his face was once again bright with a teasing smile, "I couldn't keep them off you otherwise!"

Ignoring his momentary lapse, she smiled brightly and blushed. "You're too kind." Before he had the chance to reply she continued, "Oh look," she declared, looking for an excuse to change the subject, "There's the house! Ooo… It's so big."

Nodding in agreement they settled into a comfortable silence the rest of the way to the compound.

As they approached the entrance Tiger spoke once more, "Looks like we're almost there Asa, are you ready?" His tone was cheerful, but she could see the underlying question.

"Yes." Though she hated this aspect of the mission, it wasn't something new. She was ready.

Right before they reached the front of the compound, she re-adjusted her robe allowing it to peak open slightly. She fixed her medium-sized breasts to the point where they were pushed up so high, she felt they might spill out if she moved too quickly. Softening her facial features Sakura put on the sultriest pout she could muster and looked over at Tiger. Winking at him she couldn't help but sigh inwardly as he blushed.

This was another reason she would never tell her old team what she did in ANBU. If they knew what she had to do sometimes to get to her target, they wouldn't look at her the same. For all their heroics both Naruto and Sasuke were painfully uneducated in the darker aspects of being a _female_ shinobi. She had always known that she might have to utilize her feminine charm, but it wasn't until she joined ANBU that she realized how important seduction was in the shadow world, for both men and women.

As they reached the front door, one of the four guards stationed at the compound entrance called out, "State your business!"

"Hello, I'm here to see Jun. I have a gift for his son," Tiger said while he gestured to Sakura with a beaming smile on his face, "one of my best." She gave the guards a sly smile and winked.

Grinning widely the same guard replied quickly, "Alright, follow me."

The other guards plainly leered at her while they went through the door. Sakura tried not to hiss in disgust as one of them reached out and slapped her ass as she walked by.

The guard lead them down the main hall and into a large open room, where no doubt the Crime Lord held his business meetings. Jun sat in a chair at the end of a large table and looked up from the papers he was reading when they came in. When his gaze fell upon Sakura he smirked wickedly and stood up to great them.

"Welcome, welcome. Now where does this beauty hail from?" He asked Tiger while still looking at her. She took the opportunity to lazily brush her hair back from her face and give him her best sultry gaze. Hopefully, that would ease any hesitancy he held for them.

"I own the new high-end brothel in Keishi," Tiger answered, "I wanted to pay my respects to your son's 20th birthday by offering my very best. Free of charge of course."

Jun smiled and clapped his hands together. "Great! I know Yasuo will be quite happy with this beauty."

Sakura wanted to cry in frustration. After all that trouble she went through trying to get into the young Lord's room, the Crime Lord didn't even bat a lash at the unexpected prostitute. He didn't even ask to see credentials or proof of who they were. She had come to expect a little more from this Crime Lord and was vaguely disappointed.

Yasuo was wanted for raping and murdering a young merchant's daughter in Konoha. Her father had paid them handsomely for this revenge. Since Yasuo's father was a Crime Lord however, it had to be done discretely and look natural. Konoha did not want to attract the attention of one of the five major Crime Lords in the Elemental Nations. Which is why she was here.

"Yuko," Jun called out to the guard who'd escorted them here, "Will you bring this lovely young lady to Yasuo's room. In the meantime, would you like something to drink?" He directed his last statement to Tiger who had pushed her in the guard's direction.

"Yes please, some tea would be nice." Tiger answered, then he turned to her, "Go on now, I'll be here when you're done." He gave her a wink and a kiss to her cheek before he let her go. His lips lingering for a second longer then necessary and leaving her burning. _I'll be close by if you need me_ , his eyes silently told her.

"Yes master," She answered, _I know_. She gave them a flirty bow before following after the guard.

Yuko lead her to the door she had been scouting earlier and nodded to the two guards that were stationed there. They both gave her wide knowing smiles, eyes twinkling, as she sauntered towards the room. Playing her part, she smiled back at them, letting her sultry gaze lightly look them over. With one last teasing glance over her shoulder she walked through the door.

Yasuo was lounging on a couch in the corner of the large room. The minute she walked in she felt the heat of his gaze roam her body unabashedly.

Giving him a sweet smile Sakura slowly walked towards where he was sitting, letting her hips move gracefully from side to side. She crossed her hands behind her back and pushed her chest out. She knew that caught his attention because she saw his eyes flutter back up to her breasts while he looked her over appreciatively.

"Wow aren't you a pretty thing." He grinned, "What's your name sweetheart?"

His lips were thin and when he smiled, they appeared almost non-existent. Examining him she noticed that his teeth were straight but slightly yellow with a small chip on the left front tooth. His eyes were a dark brown and looked too small for his large head. His only redeeming quality was his hair, it was dark like midnight and fell around his face in thick waves.

"You may call me Asa, young Lord." She bowed demurely. Men who took part in rape often enjoyed their women weak and powerless.

"And you may call me _Master_ for the time we have together." He warned, his chipped tooth looking out of place in his strangely soft smile.

She bowed again, even lower this time, "Yes _master_."

He beckoned her with his finger, "Come closer Asa let me have a look at you."

She came and stood right in front of him while he leaned back on the couch. His eyes roamed her body and she could tell he liked what he saw. His eyes darkened with lust as he gazed upon her barely covered breasts.

"You like what you see, _master_?" She breathed while her hand went to the knot keeping her robe together. "Would you like to see more?" She asked quietly keeping her voice low and breathy. Sakura knew men loved to hear when women were aroused, and it was easy enough to learn how to fake.

"Fuck yes." He answered quickly, "You're the hottest hooker I've had in a while, take off those clothes." His voice was breathy, yet screechy, as though she could still hear the higher than normal pitch his voice naturally took.

She slowly undid the knot and let the robe slip off her figure leaving her standing there in front of him in only her nightie. Her nipples hardened suddenly from the chill of the room. Yasuo's gaze immediately slid to them, while his smile only grew.

She crawled onto his lap laid her hands on his shoulders while her thighs went to both sides of his body. Without asking for permission she started to rub slow sensual circles onto his chest. Meanwhile her chakra slowly seeped into his body. One thread she sent up to his brain to increase the amount of dopamine produced, making him feel pleasure unlike any he's ever felt. She could feel the result of that poking her in her inner thigh as his breath started to come out faster in heavy pants.

"Oh yeah…" He sighed. "That's it..." Her hands had shifted downwards to hook the hem of his shirt and he let her pull it right off of his head.

Her hands immediately returned to his chest and began the journey downwards. Sakura then sent another chakra thread to his heart forcing it to beat faster, and faster, and faster.

"Fuck-fuck-fuck" He groaned out, as she reached the hem of his pants. "How…does… this… feel… so… good?" He heaved between pants.

"I'm really good at my job." She whispered into his ear and gave him some small kisses on his neck to keep up the ruse. The smell of sweat and booze filled her nostrils and she almost gagged in disgust. As her chakra continued to pump his heart faster, her hands slipped into his pants and she began to rub the hard bulge.

"Fuck, yeah." His voice was raspy, coming out of his throat almost high pitched. Her chakra thread increased his dopamine production even more as his heart was now beating unnaturally fast and she didn't want to risk him noticing something was wrong.

As his heart reach critical level and he could barely breathe he tried to get her to stop her ministrations. "Get… off…" He eventually managed to say. "… need… break."

"Is something wrong?" Sakura asked with fake concern. She stopped rubbing him but only moved her hands back up to his chest and increased his heart even more… She was almost there, just around 30 seconds more… 25…

"Yes" He managed to say just barely a whisper. His face was becoming red, and his mouth was hanging open in an attempt to suck in air. She doubted he would be able to speak again, time to get the witnesses.

"GUARDS!" Sakura shouted, "Something's wrong with Yasuo!"

She kept her hands on his chest to keep the chakra going, just in case, but this time instead of sensual circles she began making gestures of concern. 10…

The guards burst into the door as she shook him, making sure to keep her hands connected.

Sakura glanced back at them, her expression frantic, "I think he's having a heart attack!" She choked out as they rushed over to the couch.

Yasuo's eyes were bugged wide and he was barely breathing. His face had turned a dark shade of red and he was no longer able to hold himself up.

"Help him please!" She begged with her hands still on his chest as his head rolled back. 5… 4… 3…

"Move back girl, we got it!" The tall guard barked at her when they finally got to the couch.

1…

She gave his heart one final squeeze for insurance and then let go of his chest and scrambled away from the man, allowing the two guards to shove her behind them.

"He's dying!" She wailed, "Do something!" her voice cracked as she started to force tears into her eyes.

Sakura could see his chest barely moving. His lids were still open, and the whites of his eyes were strangely bright in the dim room. Her fake tears were flowing easily down her face now as she continued to shout at them to do something, to _save_ him.

"Get her out of here!" The tall guard commanded to the other, "Bring her back to her Master, he's in the office with Jun… And get Jun while you're at!"

The second guard turned away from the couch grabbed her by her arm. As soon as he got a hold of her, she leaned up against him and started to nuzzle her face in his shoulder for comfort. He smelt strongly like tobacco, but Sakura forced herself to remain in his arms as he dragged her out of the room.

Just as they were about to walk through the doorway, she glanced back up beneath her tear-filled eyes to see that Yasuo's heart had stopped beating and the guard had started compressions. She allowed herself to smile faintly into the chest of the guard, her job was done. He was dead.

Sakura continued to sniffle and lean heavily against the man as he hustled her quickly back down the hall towards the main room.

"What's wrong?" Jun asked, when the guard burst into the room with her in tow.

"Yasuo is having a heart attack! Come quick!"

Jun visibly palled and took a look at her all red-eyed and snotty. His gaze quickly went back to the guard, dismissing her.

Jun came strutting forwards and placed his hands aggressively on the man's shoulders. He shook them roughly, angrily, "Tell me what happened." He commanded.

Jun's face was ghostly pale, and his lips were pulled tightly together, but it was his eyes that scared her. They were cold, dark, and emotionless, but oh so very calculating. He seemed to be already trying to deduce how this could have happened to his young and healthy son.

 _Shit, he_ was _smart, they needed to get out of here or risk getting caught by him._

"Along the way, we have to go." The guard stammered, "He might not have much time."

 _Perfect_.

Jun looked at them briefly, slightly undecided about what he wanted to do. Shaking his head, he shouted at one of the nearby guards to escort them off the property before he promptly disappeared out the door.

As soon as the Crime Lord was gone Tiger raced towards her and she slumped into his arms crying.

"Are you alright?" He whispered into her ear; his voice full of concern. She only sobbed harder. His strong arms tightened around her, to hold her closer, and she wished that this wasn't a part of their act and that he could hold her like this for real.

As a guard lead them back out the compound Tiger murmured softly in her ear sweet little words of comfort. She clutched him and didn't let go until they took a sharp turn on the main road and the house faded into the distance. She almost sighed in disappointment when they reached a safe distance from the house and she _had_ to untangle herself from him.

The walk back to their bags was spent in comfortable silence. It was only when a small breeze broke through the trees that she realized in all the ruckus she'd forgotten her robe. It seemed Tiger had noticed too because he peeled off his own jacket and gave it to her without a word. She'd mumbled a thanks and they continued on their way.

When they were walking Tiger always walked slightly ahead of her and she took the opportunity to study him mask-less. He really was handsome. Strong jawline, narrow sharp nose, full lips and beautiful eyes. His green eyes reminded her of her own natural green eyes. They were probably contact lenses, but she'd always loved it when men had beautiful eyes.

"So, I wanted to talk to you about something…" Tiger began awkwardly. He was scratching his neck the same way Naruto did whenever he was uncomfortable.

"Mmm?" She mumbled absentmindedly.

It was curious, Tiger was almost never uncomfortable. In all their time together, he always seemed so sure of himself. She admired that about him. His posture was always confident, his face never betrayed any unnecessary emotions and whenever he fought for her, fuck he was amazing.

Since hiding your identity is so important in ANBU, whenever they got into fights, they always used basic skills, there hadn't been a time yet where they'd had to resort to their unique abilities. But what she had seen from Tigers fighting, well, he was an animal. It's why even though all her missions were dangerous she almost never felt at risk knowing he had her back. Theirs had grown into a true partnership.

"This is probably going to be my last ANBU mission."

Her heart skipped a beat at those words. Her mouth opened and closed like an awkward fish. Her mind was blank, she didn't know what to say.

Before the silence turned uncomfortable Sakura forced herself to speak, "Are you retiring? You're not that old yet!" She laughed, awkwardly trying to keep the inner turmoil out of her voice.

They never talked about their feelings or how much they depended on one another or how much she had grown to look forwards to their missions just so she could spend some time with him. She knew he cared for her and he knew she cared for him, but it was something they never discussed. It was subconscious, barely detectable beneath their regular banter. It had only been glaring that one time she had healed him after the ambush, and yet neither of them had mentioned it.

"Yeah, well… I got a promotion and… I'm going to need to be _full-time visible_ in the village now."

 _Woah, who was Tiger?_

"What do you mean? What kind of job needs full time village visibility?" She asked, dumbfound.

"I wish I could tell you Falcon," He sighed, running his hands through his thick hair, "I really do. But it's highly classified right now, so I can't say anything."

"Oh." She honestly didn't know what else to say.

"I just wanted to tell you, give you a heads up you know, so next mission when you show up expecting this hottie you won't be too disappointed to find my replacement." He grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

Next mission? Was she even going to continue without him?

Sakura had always thought that they were in it together, for the long run. She'd assumed that they would both retire at the same time because neither of them would be able to continue without the other.

Maybe she had imagined all of it, including his feelings for her. "Right."

It was in that moment that they reached their bags. She gave him back his jacket before stripping down into the nude to change back into her ANBU armour. Just as she was pulling on her mesh undershirt, she felt his hand on her arm.

"Falcon." She turned her head towards him and looked up into his deep beautiful eyes. "I am sorry. I would stay if I could, but I have no choice. This promotion, it's been my dream for as long as I can remember and well, I can't do both." The sad smile he gave her honestly broke her heart.

She covered his hand with hers and spun to completely face him. "I know, I'm sorry." She hesitated before continuing, "You were my first partner, and we've never talked about this kind of stuff before but, you make me feel safe. Even when you were a mile away, I always knew I could count on you to protect me. You've taught me so much since I've joined ANBU, things that have saved my life. You've saved my life! All I'm trying to say is, I'll miss you. But if this promotion really has been your dream then, I am truly happy for you." She smiled up at him.

When her eyes met his she almost gasped in surprise. His gaze was intense, it was the kind she saw in his eyes when he got serious in his fights. Seconds later, it was gone, and it made her wonder if she'd even seen it in the first place.

"You're such a girl Falcon!" He smiled down at her contently. "But truly, thank you for that heartfelt moment, even if it's going to make leaving you harder." He winked, then turned away to finish his own transformation back into ANBU.

When they were both dressed and ready to go they leapt up into the trees and began the long journey back to the village. They ran in comfortable silence, as was protocol, only stopping twice for water and food. They were outside the village gates by noon the next day.

Opting to use one of the specially hidden underground ANBU entrances they avoided the shinobi on guard and followed to tunnel straight for ANBU headquarters. Once inside the compound they reported in to the current ANBU in charge and gave their verbal description of the mission. Two hours later after repeating the events three separate times to ensure their accuracy and reliability they were dismissed.

As they headed to the locker rooms Sakura's mind was running wild. She so desperately wanted to come up with something to say to force him to see her, to make him rethink abandoning her. Yet she knew there was nothing she could say that would be enough.

She _knew_ him, even if she didn't know his name or what he really looked like she knew him on the _inside_. The way he spoke about that promotion, she knew that there was nothing she could say that would ever change his mind.

When they finally reached the split off for the men and women's locker room, she hesitated.

"I-" "Ju-" They both tried to speak at once.

Chuckling lightly Tiger continued first, "I had a great time, thank you for making these past two years not unbearable." She wished he didn't have his mask on, because she was dying to see his face one more time.

"No, problem," She said, smiling faintly, "and… uh… good luck out there."

"Thanks. I guess." He shrugged. It looked like he wanted to say more but stayed quiet. They stared at each other, unsure of what more to say or do.

Theirs had been a perfect partnership. His fighting style had complemented hers like no other, his quiet rage had been the perfect match for her fiery temper. He had treated her with respect and admiration based on nothing but her skill, something she had never experienced before, and it was now coming to an end.

"Well… bye then" she finally mumbled and turned towards the women's locker room.

She didn't want to stand there like a love-sick girl waiting for him to give her a hint. Waiting for him to make the first move. She was sick of it, maybe their parting was for the better. This way she could forget about him and try to move on. Maybe she would retire from ANBU too, leave all of this behind.

Just as she was past the door and heading down the hall she froze at the sound of his soft voice as he whispered to himself, just barely loud enough for her to hear.

"I'll miss you too, my falcon."

* * *

 _MY falcon, MY falcon?! What the hell did he mean by my falcon?_

Sakura was sitting on the bench in the dimly light women's locker room with her hands glued to her forehead. What Tiger had said had confused the crap out of her. She didn't know what to think.

Was this the hint she had been waiting for?

She reached to the side and grabbed her Falcon mask peering deeply into it hoping it would give her the answer.

When she'd heard those words come out of his mouth she had frozen in shock. Scared that he knew she'd heard him, she stayed in place, standing smack in the middle of the hall, until she was sure he was gone. When she finally made her way into the locker-room her mind had been reeling.

He didn't know she'd heard, maybe this was his way of saying goodbye. A weird way of saying goodbye, _my falcon_ sounded extremely possessive, not something she'd expect to hear from someone abandoning her.

 _Is this how he'd always seen their relationship?_

At that thought her heart fluttered, she also saw herself as being _his_ falcon, just like he was _her_ tiger. She didn't want to work with anyone else. She didn't _want_ anyone else, period.

 _Did he want her too?_

Frustratingly she threw the mask back onto the bench and rubbed her now contactless eyes. After getting up off the bench, she crossed the narrow room to look into one of the many mirrors at her dishevelled appearance.

Her still blond hair was lightly tangled with small kinks in it from when it had been in a bun on the back of her head. Her emerald green eyes shined with moisture from frustration and dry contact lenses. She reached into the sink in front of her and splashed some water onto her face.

She didn't know what to do. Go back to him and demand answers or stay in the dark… forever?

She looked back up into the mirror and wondered. She didn't know who he was, if he left today, she would never find out the truth and she would always be left wondering why she hadn't taken the risk. They had been tip-toeing around their feelings ever since that ambush and frankly she was sick of it. She _needed_ to know, and this was the best opportunity she was ever going to get and if he turned her down, she didn't have to see him again.

With one last determined look in the mirror she spun around and stalked back out of the women's locker room.

Tiger had his back turned to her when she entered the empty room. He was standing in front of a locker rummaging through a navy bag. Before she lost her nerve, she closed the space between them and grabbed his arm to spin him around.

Instead, she found herself trapped between a cold hard locker and a muscular warm body with a kunai pressing against her throat.

"Falcon?" He stared down at her startled face, dumfound. "What the hell!?" The grip on the kunai loosened and it clattered to the floor.

"I need to know." She inhaled slightly and the smell of him filled her; lemongrass and blue cypress.

"Know what?" His expression was soft, almost expectant.

She took a deep breath and enjoyed the feel of his body still pressed against hers one last time before she opened her mouth to change everything.

"This." And before he could do anything to stop her, she softly pressed her lips to his.

His reaction was instantaneous. His lips parted alongside hers and she felt as though she was taking a breath of fresh air for the first time. He met her stroke for stroke, his passion matched hers. It was like finally knowing what had been missing in her life and finding it. Finding it in _him_.

All of him, he was intoxicating, and he was everywhere. His fingers tangled themselves in her hair as he pressed her harder against the locker. Her hands clenched tightly around his neck as she tried to get closer to him. His tongue in her mouth added fuel to the burning fire that had erupted in her lower stomach.

"I didn't…" She finally trembled when he paused for a breath. "I mean, I-"

He interrupted her, his voice deep, husky and so unbelievably sexy, "Do you want this?" He groaned.

His dark eyes searched her own for hesitation. His expression almost soft, like he didn't want to scare her away. Like he was afraid of what had just happened and what could happen. But she was not afraid, she had wanted this for _so_ long, he had changed her life. This one time she would allow herself to live her fantasy.

 _Yes,_ she silently told him, her skin shivered from the promise of pleasure as he reached out and trailed a finger up her neck to lift her face towards his.

 _Please._

This time he kissed her deep and passionately. His tongue sending waves of pleasure through her body as he thoroughly took her mouth. His hands roamed her, dipping down to her stomach and back up to massage her breasts. It took all she had to remain upright as he brushed his thumb over her clothed breast, releasing a small moan from her mouth. His presence was irresistible, enveloping her and she somehow felt deep in her soul how utterly right this was.

He made quick work of her shirt pulling it up off her head with speed she only saw when they sparred. She had no such tact and promptly ripped his shirt.

His laugh was hoarse as he kissed her again while she tried to unbutton his pants. His hands kept distracting her as he lightly trailed his fingers up and down the sides of her naked chest sending shivers up and down her body.

His voice was low, and beautifully seductive when he finally asked her, "Do you want to just rip those too?"

Instead of answering she dropped down onto her knees and quickly undid his pants.

The sound that left his throat when she took him in her mouth was indescribable, and she knew she would do anything just to hear it again. He tasted like salty like an ocean breeze, and she loved it. In fact, she couldn't get enough of it. Every time she took him all the way she could feel his hands tightening in her hair, and she swore she heard him sigh.

"As much as I love to see you on your knees," He finally ground out between clenched teeth. He pulled her up and pressed her back against the locker. His fingers hooking themselves inside the hem of her pants. He leaned into her and trailed heated kisses up her neck until finally he whispered in her ear, "That's not all I want to do with to you." And then promptly ripped her own pants off, leaving her in her underwear.

Seconds later his body was pressing hotly against hers and his fingers were rubbing circles around her breasts. He was watching her reaction as he slowly passed a thumb over her and she just about shuddered in pleasure. His eyes gleamed erotically as he leaned down to take it in his mouth never breaking eye contact with her. She writhed in pleasure, needing to relieve the growing pressure between her thighs.

"I-" she breathed. "Please!" she suddenly cried out as he flicked her with his finger while he lightly bit her other breast.

He looked up at her with hooded eyes, full of desire and finally bucked his hips against hers. She moaned loudly from the contact and he finally let go of her breasts. Positioning his hips against hers he began to grind slowly against her.

"Fuck!" He moaned into her mouth. His tongue tangling itself in her own. "Do you know how long I've wanted to do this?" He growled into her ear as he began to trail his tongue along her neck biting and sucking at her skin, leaving behind a trail of pink and red spots.

She needed more of him and he seemed to be in agreement because as she began to press her hips harder against him, his hands reached behind her to grab a hold of her ass and hoist her up.

He laid her down on the bench and glanced up into her hazy eyes with the biggest smirk on his face. His fingers trailed the insides of her legs and pushed them apart as he began to lay fiery kisses up, and up and up, until the only thing separating his mouth from her skin was the thin lace from her underwear.

Her brain was mush, so heightened from the intensity and passion of their actions that she barely noticed him slide her panties down off her body. It was only when he reached down and gave her a nice long kiss that she understood. She bucked forwards, her mouth falling open in a loud moan as he began to suck and rub her with his tongue.

She was half dazed when she heard him groan into her, "you taste so good."

Then his mouth left her, and he pulled her up into a sitting position on bench. He was kneeling down in front of her and his arm snaked back to grab the back of her head as he pulled her into a passionate open-mouthed kiss. "You taste good everywhere."

His words sent shudders down her body and she realized that she'd never wanted anyone as bad as she wanted him in that moment.

She told him just as much, her own voice low and breathy from arousal, "I want you." She kissed him fiercely and urged him up to a standing position. "Now."

At her words his gaze darkened even more, and he yanked her up off the bench and lifted her up into his arms. Her legs wrapped around his hips and he backed them up until her back was once again against the lockers.

In one fluid motion, he shifted his hips and plunged fully into her. As he settled deeply inside, she heard that beautiful sound once more. Almost between a moan, a groan and a growl, she knew he was holding back. Like with his fighting it was in that sound that she knew he fucked like an animal.

He began slowly, almost sweetly, as he placed kisses upon kisses across her face, neck, and chest. But she wanted more. She wanted _him_ , not this toned-down version. She wanted him wild and free.

"More." She breathed against his lips. "I want more."

She grabbed his face and pulled it back away from her, so she could gaze upon him fully. He stopped moving his hips and looked at her expectantly. "I want _you_."

This time he understood, something akin to red flashed in his eyes and his whole demeanor changed into something much more familiar.

He grinned wickedly, and she swore she saw long canines that weren't there before appear in his mouth. He nuzzled her neck letting his teeth drag softly against her skin. His voice husky, "I've been waiting for you to say that." And then his teeth broke her skin at the exact moment that he decided to start to move inside her again and she screamed in the perfect mixture of pleasure and pain.

This time his love-making was rough, animalistic and exactly what Sakura had been hoping for. He ground into her deeply, pulling almost all the way out before slamming back in. His hands supporting her butt clenched her tightly, through the haze of pleasure she wondered if she felt his nails digging into her, breaking the skin. But his mouth was what held most of her attention, his kisses were now frenzied, his teeth had broken the inside of her lip and as he fucked her senseless, he managed to lick the blood off like it was the most delicious popsicle.

"You feel so good" He growled into her ear.

Her arms were wrapped around his neck and her head had fallen back to lean against the locker as he began to suck on her breasts once more. With this change in position she felt him hit her deeper still and her breath shuddered as she moaned.

The combined action of his teeth grazing her and him inside, exactly so that he hit that sweet spot, began to shift her closer and closer to pure bliss. She knew he was looking up at her from under his lashes while he played her breasts, and his expression aroused her even more, if that was possible. When moved his mouth away she almost growled in protest.

"I want to see you" was all he said as he readjusted his position, so he could hold her up with one arm as the other snaked forwards to rub her between her thighs.

She closed her eyes from the intensity of the sensation.

He was amazing, he was nothing she had ever experienced before. He stood on his own, apart from everyone else. As he brought her closer and closer to the edge, she felt something stir deep inside her that told her, this man, he was _made_ for _her._

His breath, as he panted above her, she loved.

His arms as he held her up securely, she loved.

His lips that kissed her so tenderly and so viciously at the same time, she loved.

It had been a long time coming but somewhere deep in her brain she knew she loved him, regardless of whatever his name was, regardless of who he was outside these walls. As she reached that peak and clenched around him, she also knew that this would be the only time.

He leaned his forehead against hers as they both came back down from a high so unimaginable, she couldn't describe it. His soft breath was coming out in quick pants above her lips. His eyes were closed while she studied his face, memorizing it. His brown hair was plastered to his forehead and neck was slick with sweat and yet she didn't find it unappealing. His arms still held her up and her legs were still wrapped around his thighs. He was still inside her and she was in no rush to disconnect.

After a long moment he set her back down on the ground, steadying her as she struggled to regain her footing. He looked her deep in the eyes and said the words they both knew were true, "This can't happen again."

"I know." She agreed. "I know."

He leaned down and kissed her once more. His lips soft and swollen gently moving against her own, saying goodbye. His tongue lightly trailed along inside of her mouth as they both poured everything into this last kiss.

When they finally broke apart, she turned away first moving to put her underwear and shirt back on. As she made her way back down the locker-room and towards the door, she turned back towards him one last time.

He was watching her, his eyes sad and his expression grim. But something about his face registered within her for the first time since she had come rushing into the locker-room. She gave him a wide smile as she turned away and walked out the door almost skipping as she thought happily,

 _Tiger's real eyes are blue._

* * *

Back in the men's locker-room Naruto sat down on the bench after just watching his favourite person walk out the door for the last time. But he wasn't all disappointed because as she had looked back at him that last time and smiled such a beautiful smile, he'd realized that he'd completely missed something about her appearance from when she'd first walked in to confront him. He smiled wickedly to himself as he thought,

 _Falcon's real eyes are green._


	2. Part Two

"Falcon."

"Sir."

Sakura was in her uniform standing in the office of the supreme ANBU commander, Lion.

This was it.

It had been two weeks since that encounter between herself and Tiger and she had finally gotten her request for an audience with Lion granted.

Immediately after leaving the locker room that day she had returned to her supervisor and had put in a request to leave ANBU.

It had been instantaneous.

Sakura had always known that she wouldn't be able to do it without Tiger. She couldn't even make herself try. _He_ was ANBU for her and she knew that even if she wanted to make it work, the memory of them would never go away. Trying to work with others would simply make her miss him more. So, the decision had been easy, a no brainer.

Unfortunately, it wasn't that simple. ANBU currently _owned_ her and so she couldn't just leave. She had to _apply_ to leave and have a good reason for it too. Which is why she was here now: the final step in her application. Sakura needed Lion's approval.

Lion was a large burly man. Beneath his uniform she could almost taste the muscles teeming with power. His presence was overwhelming, his large frame took up twice the size of a regular man. Upon his face lay a large ANBU mask with the design of an orange and yellow lion.

He sat behind an enormous desk littered with papers and was leaning back on his chair with his feet propped up on the table. Though his posture was relaxed she doubted he ever truly let his guard down, even deep within the ANBU compound.

Sakura stood at attention, both hands behind her back and her face forwards. Though she was tense and nervous, she hoped her posture did not betray her.

She had come up with a plan, a reason for leaving that she hoped was good enough. She knew many ANBU that had left, and they hadn't had _much_ trouble leaving.

Yet, she also knew that in a world where killers were highly sought after, great killers were in even higher demand, and though she didn't want to brag, she was _pretty good_. Capable of murder so subtle she fooled all but the very best.

Which also made her wonder how Tiger had been able to leave ANBU so easily. He was just as good as her, maybe not specialized in assassinations, but that didn't mean he wasn't good. If anything, he was even better at ensuring the death of his enemies in battle.

 _How had they let_ _that_ _weapon go so easily?_

The reason behind his departure left her with an uneasy feeling. It was such an unusual situation and she couldn't understand how or why it had happened so fast. One day he told her he was leaving, the next his name was completely off the roster. Fully dismissed from service.

A deep cough brought her attention back to reality.

Lion had shifted in his seat. He was leaning forwards with his elbows on the table and his hands intertwined together. The papers on his desk crunched as he crumbled a couple of them with his large elbows.

"So, you want to leave?" He began, his deep voice rumbling in the small room, softly echoing off the walls.

She straightened her back and nodded her head forward into a low bow, "Yes, sir."

He leaned back in his chair and picked up a file off the cluttered table, opening it he continued, "You wrote in your application that you believed you'd served your time with us here and you wanted to return to being a regular Jounin in order to run more medically inclined missions. To be specific you stated, 'With the increasing lack of interest in medical justu, the demand for medic-nin has increased. As a leading figure in the medical world my presence on medical missions will provide the exposure necessary to inspire a larger number of shinobi to learn medical-justu. Unfortunately, this will require my full attention for the enforceable future, therefore, I implore you to release me from by ANBU service.'" He paused for emphasis before continuing, "Is this correct?"

"Yes, sir." She answered honestly.

He titled his head to the side and if he wasn't wearing a mask, she knew she would see him looking at her with undisguised interest, "Operative remove your mask."

She almost stumbled over her words, "Sir?"

That was highly unusual. They never removed their masks.

Today, she had forgone her usual contact lenses and had only wore a short black wig over her pink hair. She wore no heavy cosmetics and she knew, in this half-assed disguise, her face would be highly recognizable.

Not that Lion didn't know who she _really_ was, he was in charge of ANBU and he had access to the full roster and true identities.

He cocked his head forwards and crossed his arms over his chest, "You heard me, I want to see your face."

She schooled her facial expression into one of neutral boredom, the one Kakashi always implored, and reached back around her head to remove her mask, "Yes sir."

Even with his mask she knew he was analyzing her face for any hint of emotion, good or bad. She strained to keep herself from grimacing in discomfort from the intense scrutinizing and clenched her hands together behind her back to ease her irritation.

"Is this really why you want to leave?" He inquired with a hint of disbelief in his voice. When she nodded in acknowledgement, he leaned forwards to rest his elbows back down on the desk and she could feel the smirk behind his mask as he asked, "This has nothing to do with Tiger's departure?"

Sakura's breath almost caught in her throat as his words hit home.

 _Did he know what had happened between them?_

Her clenched hands grew even tighter as she struggled to remain emotionless. Her mind was racing uncontrollably. There was no way for Lion to know what they had done, had he somehow clued into the ANBU gossip that they were together? It made no sense, why would he be concerned about the actions of his subordinates when it didn't affect their mission performance. She strained her hands together squeezing so tightly she felt her fingernails pierce skin.

Struggling to reign in her spiraling emotions she ground out through her teeth, "No, sir."

"Neither of you broke code 3?" Lion asked casually, his head still tilted slightly, as he assessed her.

At that question she could no longer remain emotionless and her mouth fell open into a large gasp as she ran scrambled forwards.

She dropped to her knees in front of the desk and with her head bowed down in submission and she cried out, " _Gods no!_ Never! I would never do that."

Code 3 was the rule indicating that no operative should ever reveal their identity or risk severe punishment and forced retirement from the ANBU corps.

Though she had only wanted to tell Tiger her real name twice, during the ambush and the time in the locker room, she had never. She had always been a rule follower and that hadn't changed. The fact that Lion even suggested that she would completely astonished her.

 _Why would they ever? Did this have something to do with who_ _he_ _was?_

Lion stood up behind his seat and looked down at her. With his arms crossed across his chest and full height towering over her she felt unbelievably small.

 _Please believe me, please believe me._ She chanted silently; her head still bowed down.

She had heard horror stories of the punishments given to those who broke the most sacred ANBU rule. The rule was there for their own protection and for the protection of the entire ANBU association. ANBU shinobi were notorious for performing the gruesome and necessary missions that were either too risky, too secret, or too damming for the public eye to know. Regular missions given to shinobi in the main force were released as public record, apart from the few regular missions that would become classified due to unforeseen circumstances. So, in order to protect the shinobi who murdered and maimed various public figures or destroyed alliances their identities were kept secret, even from one another. She also knew that once someone left ANBU their true identities were removed from the database leaving only their code-name as reference for their actions. This way no one would be able to dig up a specific shinobi's murderous past. Imagine if someone found the 4th Hokage's dirty ANBU past (if he had one) and aired it out for everyone to know, the public outcry would be unimaginable.

"Stand up." Lion commanded roughly.

Sakura scrambled onto her feet, almost tripping, as she returned to her previous position. Her back and shoulders straight, her hands behind her back, and her face wiped of emotions.

Lion sauntered around his large desk. With his arms still crossed he scrutinized her, looking her up and down so visibly she could see his masked face tilt. She swallowed shallowly as he began to pace around her.

Finally, he stopped a few feet in front, "I believe you." Was all he said, and her heart soared.

Staring at her slightly he paused for a second before he turned back around and picked up her file off his desk.

"You are officially dismissed," he decided and handed her the file before turning back around and marching back to his chair. As he sat back down, he looked at her once more, "You know what to do with that, yes?"

"Yes, sir" She replied instantly. Shock still hampering her movements.

"Well then get out of here!" He bellowed waving his hand towards the door.

She clutched the file tightly against her chest as she bowed down once more before turning around and practically sprinting out of the room.

With the file in hand Sakura returned to the ANBU women's locker-room for the last time. She cleared out her things and with one last glance towards the men's room she left the compound for what she hoped would be the last time.

* * *

It was only once she was in the safety of her own bedroom did she take a look at the file. She knew without it having to say so that this was her file. When she opened it she wasn't shocked to find her real name written in large bold letters slightly above her code name, _Falcon._ Below that was a detailed account of her various abilities ranked in order of most effective to least. The second page held the list of missions, both successfully completed and failed, though she was proud to note that there was a much larger amount of successfully completed missions.

This file was essentially her whole ANBU career on paper and she was given the final task of burning it. This ensure that no one but herself, the current supreme ANBU commander and the current Hokage would know which member of the elite ANBU she had been. Sure, some of her close friends would likely find out that she'd been in ANBU on account of accidently showing them her ANBU tattoo, but they would never be able to find out _what_ she had done, which was exactly the point. In fact, she knew for sure that Kakashi had been a part of ANBU at one point, but she did not know, and did not want to know, what he had to have done for them.

Sighing in exasperation Sakura got up off the bed and walked into her bathroom, the file in hand she stood in front of her sink.

 _Time to let everything go,_ she thought as she readied herself to perform her only fire Jutsu.

As the file in her hand slowly burned away, she almost felt relief. The weight of ANBU was finally off her shoulders. She no longer had to hide and lie to her friends by making up excuses and reasons for not attending birthdays or holiday celebrations. She no longer had to worry every-time she left without telling anyone if she was going to make it back.

The only thing that kept her from shouting out in joy was the fact that it also meant the end of Tiger and her. It's not like she hadn't known, it _had_ been two weeks since that time, but yet, the final act of burning away her ANBU past allowed that reality to finally set in.

She was _never_ going to see him again. She was _never_ going to be with him again. She was never going to hear his _laugh_ , his _voice._

It had only been two weeks, they had spent longer periods of time apart, yet the fact that they would never be together made her heart positively _ache_.

Gods she missed him.

She missed him like the sun misses the moon and the sky misses the earth.

The file had completely disintegrated and had left her bare on the inside.

She clutched the sides of the sink as her emotions finally burst. A dam breaking apart letting the waters crash outwards, finally free. Her tears fell into the sink washing away down the drain as she cried for the hole in her heart that could only be filled by him.

As she wept, it was only then that she realized the true depth of her emotions. She had secretly hoped that what she had felt when they'd shared that moment had been skewed, heightened only by the pure trill of the act. Yet, now as she stood in her bathroom, her body aching from the loss, her mind empty and her heart _utterly_ shattered she knew what she had felt had been real. What they had shared together had been true and perfect in every sense of the word. She had known then that they had been made for each other as surely as she knew now that she would never find anythinglike it again.

Forcing herself out of the bathroom Sakura climbed into her bed and curled up around her pillow. She fell asleep with tears still gently rolling down her cheek.

* * *

A loud startling sound awoke her from her sleep. Her hand instinctively went to the kunai hidden beneath her pillow before her mind caught up.

The knocking was loud, obnoxious and accompanied by a familiar female voice, "SAKURA! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE. I CAN SEE THE LIGHT, OPEN UP!"

Sakura sighed and leaned back down onto her pillow placing the kunai back. It was still light out, the golden glow coming through her window indicated it was late afternoon. She heaved herself off the bed and walked towards her door if only to stop the banging that was giving her a massive headache.

Slamming the door wide open she growled, "WHAT?" clutching her forehead in her hand.

Ino stood on her deck garbed in a slim navy-blue halter-top dress that reached her mid-thigh. On her feet she wore black heeled boots and she clutched in her hands a beige purse. She looked like she was going-somewhere and inwardly Sakura groaned as she then knew why Ino was there in the first place.

But before Sakura could tell her she wasn't interested Ino blurted out, "Woah, you look like shit!" and pushed her way into the house.

Closing the door behind her, Sakura waved her hands dismissively, "Yeah, yeah. I know."

Ino stalked into her bedroom and called out to Sakura, "Well come on, lets fix it."

Following closely behind her Sakura groaned, "Not tonight Ino. I have a massive headache and I really don't feel like going out with you. Maybe tomorrow night."

Stopped in her tracks Ino turned around to push her hand against Sakura's forehead. A light green glowing light appeared beneath her hand and the pressure in Sakura's temple eased considerably.

"There, and what to do you mean? Don't you know?"

Crossing her arms across her chest Sakura stared at Ino as she flopped herself down on the bed. "Know what?"

"Naruto's party. Didn't you get the invite? I'm sure you did."

Sakura thought back on the stack of unopened letters on her kitchen table. She'd been a bit busy these past two weeks organizing her ANBU dismissal application that she hadn't really had the time to do much at home other than sleep. She hadn't even seen any of her friends or teammates choosing to spend her time in the hospital in order to make sure everything was set in place and realistic. She'd even added in graphs and data to support the conclusions she'd come to regarding the lack of up-and-coming medic-nin. Everything she'd written had been true, and she was even planning on following through with her plans and spending more time to promote the craft.

"I must not have seen it." Sakura simply shrugged.

"Well it says its important. So, you have no choice, you're coming!"

"What do you mean it's _important_. What could be important about one party?" Sakura groaned and fell onto the bed beside Ino, "I _really, really_ don't feel like going Ino. Today has just _not_ been my day. I want to just stay in and eat ice-cream."

Ino leaned to the side and stared at Sakura with a serious expression on her face, "It might not be _your_ day. But it will be Naruto's. The invitation said that he had an _announcement_ to make."

Ino wiggled her eyebrows and Sakura finally understood.

"Oh… OH! He's going to become Hokage!" Sakura jumped up off the bed and laughed. "OH MY GOD! It's going to be official!"

Ino smiled, "I think so."

"Okay. Okay! Well, what are we waiting for! Let's go!"

Sakura was suddenly ecstatic. Her earlier depression almost forgotten. _Naruto was going to be Hokage_ she beamed inwardly. She was so _so_ proud. She had to go congratulate him now!

She went to get up off the bed and rush out the door but before she could get far Ino grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "Not looking like that we are. Get your shit together, then we'll go."

Staring down at herself Sakura had to agree. In her stained T-shirt and massive sweat pants, she was not wearing appropriate clothes for a _Hokage Announcement Party._

Grudgingly, with Ino's persuasion, she ended up settling on a lacy-white opened-back shirt with gold detailing and an emerald green skirt with a chiffon layer. Quickly brushing her hair down and washing her face, Sakura was ready to go.

Ino led her to a large restaurant and bar with an open floor plan. It seemed that the entire restaurant had been reserved for their party. As they arrived shortly after 8 there were already a number of people mingling around.

"Are we late?" Sakura whispered to Ino as they stepped through the doors.

"Well the invite said 7. But everyone knows that _really_ means 8."

" _Ino_!"

"What? It does."

"What if we missed it?" Sakura nervously looked around the room noticing how full it was. It looked like they were the last to arrive.

"We definitely didn't miss it." Ino sighed, exasperated, as she continued to drag Sakura towards the bar, which Ino claimed was supposedly serving free booze.

"How can you be so sure!?"

"Do you even think Naruto would even make the announcement without you there? He'd wait for sure."

Sure enough, as soon as soon as Ino said his name the man in question burst through the crowd with a large beaming smile lighting up his handsome face.

"Sakura!" he exclaimed before wrapping her up into a large bone-crushing hug, "Thank goodness you're here! I've been waiting for you."

Behind his shoulder she could see Ino raise her eyebrow in a gesture that said _I told you so._

Naruto glanced back at Ino in greeting before putting his arm around Sakura's shoulder and leading her back to where he'd come from.

"Naruto." She whispered into his ear as they walked, "Is this announcement what I think it is?"

His arm tightened around her shoulders and he looked down at her with an even bigger smile than before, "You'll have to wait and see." He winked, and it was so boyishly charming she couldn't help but blush.

Ever since the end of the Fourth Shinobi War Naruto had really grown and matured into one hell of a man that sometimes, even she found herself admiring him. He was no longer obnoxiously loud, and he had a serious side that she saw come out more and more often, likely linked to his increasingly large role in village politics. But Naruto was still Naruto and when he was happy and free, like tonight, it reminded her a lot of the older days. His personality had evolved in the best way possible, he had the maturity and seriousness of an older man with the playfulness and righteousness of his youth, he truly would be an _amazing_ Hokage.

As he led her to the front of the crowd, she saw that they were indeed the last ones to arrive.

"I still think you need to work on some close combat," Sasuke insisted looking at Sai, "What if you run out of ink one of these days or get caught off guard… Again."

"That was a special circumstance and you know it." Sai groaned quietly crossing his arms.

"Wouldn't you rather be safe then sorry?" Sasuke prodded, staring pointedly at him.

Sai smiled icily, and gave Sasuke a weak glare, "Isn't it so nice that you're worried about me?"

Sasuke looked away bitterly, though Sakura could still see the teasing twinkle in his eye, "Well obviously, this is for the team. I don't actually care what happens to you. But if you die, then my left is wide open for anyone to attack, obviously."

"Obviously." Sakura agreed, finally drawing their attention away from one another, though she was sure they knew she had been there the whole time.

"Sakura." Sasuke greeted giving her a small barely-a-smile smile.

"You're late." Sai simply pointed out.

"Ino." Was all Sakura said pointing her thumb general direction Ino had run off to.

That seemed to satisfy Sai as he chuckled lightly before replying, "That explains it."

"Explains what?" drawled a sweet voice, coming up behind Sakura.

Ino stood with an angry expression on her face and a hand on her hip, indicating she knew exactly what they had been talking about.

"That you're the reason Sakura's late," Naruto jested lightly a grin donning his face, he rested a hand on her arm. "I mean, I should have known that this would happen."

Ino huffed slightly turning her head away from him, but Sakura could see the small smile on her lips. They all laughed heartedly as Naruto continued to tease her. Even Sasuke cracked a smile as their old teacher was mentioned as comparison for tardiness.

"About being late," Sakura began, "When are you going to make this announcement of yours?" she teased.

"I was waiting for _someone_ to show up." He grinned heartedly giving Ino an eyeful before winking at Sakura, "Now that she's here I guess I can do it."

Sakura nodded expectantly and as Naruto left them to go stand on the bar to get everyone's attention, she went to stand beside Sasuke.

Naruto called everyone to silence in the restaurant, and as her hand clasped Sasuke's, she knew he was just as proud of Naruto as her.

Standing together, hand in hand, they stood united, a team, as Naruto announced to the crowd that he was going to be the next Hokage. Leaning her head onto Sasuke's shoulder they both stood back as Naruto was accosted by everyone. Without speaking to one another they stood together and let him get the attention and congratulations he deserved.

"I always knew he would do it." Sasuke whispered into her hair. "I always knew."

She squeezed his hand and nodded, "I'm so happy."

"He's a great man and he's going to be a great Hokage."

"Yeah, he will." She sighed quietly.

Sakura and Sasuke stood together in silent observation and before long Sai joined them standing silently beside her. For all his faults in the past 8 years Sai had become a true member of their team.

Kakashi came to stand behind them moments later mumbling something about missing the announcement, but Sakura knew he was lying. If she knew Kakashi at all he had likely been hiding out somewhere to listen in alone, afraid his emotions would betray his carefully crafted persona.

Together they stood apart from the crowd a group of individuals so different from one another. Yet they had been brought together as part of a team and had learned to care for one another so deeply that they had become family. With her brothers in arms, and heart, around her she cried out a few tears from the shear emotion of the event and how far they had come together.

It was only a half an hour later that Naruto approached them. Grinning wildly and with his large arm span he pulled them all into a group hug. Only Sasuke let out a small sound of protest before it died out as Naruto began to speak, his voice breaking with emotion.

"Thank you so much for being here. For supporting me. You are my best friends, you each hold a piece of my heart and I couldn't have done it without you. Everyone out there is thanking me, congratulating me, but they really should be thanking you too."

He pulled back and took Sai into his arms. "Sai you've showed me a different part of being human and how much many of us still have to learn. You've taught me patience and creativity. Thank you."

Sai smiled sincerely as Naruto let him go and turned to Kakashi who was scratching his head nonchalantly. "Kakashi you taught me that it's okay to rely on others sometimes and the true meaning of being a team. You taught me the importance of loyalty and I thank you." He went to pull Kakashi into a hug and but then changed his mind and simply saluted him with a tearful grin.

Turning towards Sasuke, Naruto hugged him fiercely. "Sasuke. You were my first friend, believe it or not. You taught me to never give up hope, no matter how dark it seems. You taught me the determination and fearlessness a leader needs. Without you leaving I would never have learned about sadness, devastation and anger. I will keep those lessons with me forever. Thank you." Behind Naruto's back Sakura could see Sasuke's eyes shined with unshed tears that he tried helplessly to reign in.

Finally, Naruto turned towards her and he gripped her shoulders roughly before pulling her into a tight hug, his warm hold familiar and comforting. "Sakura." He breathed her name into the top of her head, and she let his scent warp around her, lemongrass and blue cypress, "You are my rock. You've been with me, by my side through it all. You taught me the resilience and strength I needed to stand through it all, unchanging, always strong, always powerful. You also taught me how to love... I love you so-o much." He stammered, and tears slipped out of her eyes, "I love you all." He said looking up to the rest of his team, his family. "Thank you for being here. For loving me too." He kissed her forehead and let her go. The absence of his arms around her leaving her cold and craving warmth, while his sent lingered for a second longer, filling her softly.

"Naruto we are _so_ proud." She croaked tears still in her eyes. His beautifully expressive eyes shinned with delight and if she didn't know him as well as she did, she'd have missed the hint of sadness deep in his expression.

"I know." He murmured. Clasping his hand onto Sai and Sasuke's shoulders he shouted out in celebration, "Now, let's get drunk!"

Kakashi had the one shot that Naruto forced all of team 7 to take before bowing out a silly excuse on his lips. The rest of the night passed with a lot of happy screaming, dancing and drinking.

Sakura stood back at a booth in the corner and observed, a drink in her hand, as Ino made a fool of herself by trying to convince Sai to dance with her. Sasuke sat at the bar beside Shikamaru as he let girls get him drink after drink. She laughed inwardly as she watched thinking about how much his opinion on women's attention had changed. Not that he relished in it, but he now admitted it had its advantages, one of them being free booze. Naruto flitted from group to group letting everyone have a chance the hang out with the future Hokage.

As the night grew late and more and more people left, she found herself in a booth along the back of the room across from a passed out Ino. Almost everyone was gone, and she just wanted to finish her drink before carrying Ino home. As she was halfway through, Naruto slid into the booth beside her. His large frame causing her to shift down to make room for him.

"Hey." He said softly. Leaning his head back on the bench.

"Hey." She replied, resting her head on his shoulder. They sat in comfortable silence as she slowly sipped her drink.

His breathing evened out and she wondered if he'd fallen asleep before his deep voice broke the silence. "Have you ever been in love?"

Her thoughts came to a startling halt not at the question itself, but at the tone of his voice. He sounded heartbroken.

She didn't know how to answer. Her younger self would say she had been in love, many times. First with the puppy love she'd had for Sasuke, then for the young medic-nin named Lin who she'd shared her first time with. But now, with more experience and time she knew he was talking about _true_ love, a love so powerful it hurt.

She should say yes, deep inside her she knew what she felt for Tiger was exactly what Naruto was talking about, but she barely wanted to admit it to herself. It would be the same as admitting that she would never have that kind of love again, and that thought terrified her.

Finally, through the ache in her heart at the thought of Tiger she answered, "I don't know."

"I think I have." Naruto admitted quietly, "I still am."

"Tell me…"

"She's amazing. So fierce, so strong. When I'm with her I feel like…. I feel like she was the missing piece. I didn't even know I was missing a piece," He laughed, "but my-god with her I realize how wrong I was. She reminds me a lot of you." He grinned and poked her.

She blushed onto his shoulder, if she was anything like what he'd just described she'd be happy. "She must be a lucky woman to get someone as amazing as you to love her." Sakura smiled sadly.

"… Amazing?…" Naruto whispered hoarsely testing the word on his tongue, "I'm not sure. I couldn't even tell her that I love her."

At the tone of his words she froze. The only time she had seen him in such a state of utter vulnerability were the nights after their encounters with Sasuke, back in their teens. They would sit together and share a bottle of alcohol whispering quietly back in forth words of comfort and love, making sure they were both still there, that they both still had each other. She remembered his voice when he would tell her that he wasn't giving up, that they would get Sasuke and bring him back. His voice would crack back then but nevertheless it was the same now. His anguish was the same.

 _Who was this woman that made Naruto feel so much? Why didn't he tell her? Was he scared?_

She had so many questions for him, yet she knew she couldn't ask, it wouldn't help. He was seeking comfort in her and she would let him. He could rest his heart and soul in her palm and she would protect it with her life.

She leaned forwards and looked back at him as he stared up at the ceiling. His eyes shining with unshed tears she knew he was trying his damned hardest to keep in.

She stood up from her seat and moved slightly back to sit herself right on his lap. When he looked down at her in shook and confusion, she simply wiped his damp eyes lightly with the pads of her thumbs before leaning forwards on his chest. There was no need for words, she understood.

His arms wrapped around her and he mumbled a thanks into her hair as she rubbed slow circles on his back. He took in all the comfort she provided, and she secretly hoped it was enough. She couldn't fix his problems, but she could be his rock. When he wanted to lean on her she would be there, routed into the ground.

Naruto liked to act like he had everything together, most people wouldn't recognize the man in her arms right now. But their team was close now, and her and Naruto even closer. He knew he could come to her, no judgements, no questions, just support, and much needed love. He sought it out today, likely only because he'd had a lot to drink, but nevertheless he was hurting on the inside and Sakura wanted to do everything she could.

He didn't cry once as he held her in his arms in the dim almost empty bar. She'd long forgotten her drink on the bar table and it was warm by the time Naruto lifted his head from her shoulder and told her he was ready to go.

She untangled herself from him and wiggled out of the booth. Leaning over she picked Ino up and used her chakra enhanced super strength to ease the strain. They left together, Naruto with one arm nonchalantly draped over her shoulder and Ino in her arms.

He walked with her all the way to Ino's house, watched her as she placed Ino her back into her bed.

They walked to her house in silence. Her body curved naturally towards his from the cold bite of the night wind. When they finally reached her house, she couldn't stop herself and asked him the one question that had been bothering her all night, "Naruto." She started quietly, turning towards him with her back to her front porch.

He took his arm away from her shoulder and placed them into his pockets. Looking down at her, his face blank, he mumbled, "mhm?"

" _Are you okay?_ "

The question hung in the air between them. His eyes opened slightly in surprise before softening. He gave her a sad smile, "I don't know."

Her already broken heart, broke a bit more at his words. She sighed unhappily and reached up to brush back his hair in endearment. Glancing up at his face she studied the hard lines of his jaw and the small clusters of freckles that covered his nose and cheeks. He was so handsome. As she stared up at him, she found herself imaging Tiger's features. His forehead was about the same with small frown lines etched into the skin, his nose just as straight, his cheeks clear of freckles and his jaw similarly sharp. Startled with where her mind was wandering, she glanced up one last time to look into Naturo's eyes and realized how strikingly similar their eyes were, a deep ocean blue full of life and yet full of death.

Shaking her head in confusion she turned away from him, "Good night Naruto." She called back as she climbed the stairs of her porch and made her way towards her door.

"Good night Sakura."

* * *

For the next week Sakura dreamed of Tiger every night.

Some nights he would run his hands along her body, sending tingles up her spine. His deep rough voice whispering her name, her real name. He would kiss her tenderly letting his tongue dip into her mouth lightly stroking, caressing. His fingers roaming her stomach, her hips, her thighs sending hot shivers up and down her body. But as soon as they dipped to the juncture between her legs, she would wake up drenched in sweat and uncomfortably aroused.

Other nights she would dream of them on missions together, of their casual interactions. She yearned for his presence and her brain concocted scenarios of the two of them. None of them real, all fantasies in which he always ends up professing his love to her. Those dreams were the worst because when she awoke, she always felt a deep ache in her chest. Sometimes in those moments after waking up it felt like the hole in her heart was growing.

This morning she awoke to a pleasant ache between her legs and sweat smeared across her body. Begrudgingly, pulling herself out of bed she hopped into the cold shower and tried her hardest to not think about her dreams.

Tired as hell and frustrated with the way the last week had turned out she made her way towards the Hokage tower for her first _official_ day back as a full time Jounin.

Her walk was slow, almost sauntering, subconsciously she was dreading going back to work. The past week had been a bit of a vacation for her. She'd spent every day in the training grounds working out the frustrations of her dreams and polishing her fighting skills.

As a medic-nin when on missions it was strongly discouraged to take part in any fighting. However, she also knew that not being as capable as possible got someone killed very easily, either herself or her teammates. If she died or got severely injured everyone else was at stake. Many in the shinobi population see being a medic-nin as an easy job in which you don't need a lot of fighting skills to succeed in, though that might be true for those who prefer to spend their time staffing the hospital. The medic-nin that get field missions are just as well trained as regular shinobi, sometimes better, they have to be if they want to keep themselves and their teammates alive. It doesn't help that enemies will often target the medic-nin first in fights.

After training all week her fighting abilities were back in tiptop shape. Though she mostly wanted to continue to bash out her frustrations in the fields, another part of her subconscious was hoping that there would be a mission. Maybe she secretly wanted a real enemy to maim and not just a rock.

Walking up the stairs of the Hokage Tower she strolled in to the main lounge room and spotted Kurenai in the corner manning the regular missions' desk. Walking up to the table she smiled at Kurenai, "Morning. Got any available missions for me?"

With a coffee cup in her hand Kurenai smiled back at her sweetly, "Are you asking as a regular Jounin or as a medic?"

Technically, given her rank Sakura would be eligible to take any missions requiring a Jounin. But those were few and far between as most Jounin were leaders on a team of Genins or Chunins. The only missions available for someone with a simple Jounin rank and no team would be a fill-in mission if a team was missing a member or a solo mission and Sakura was uninterested in both.

"Medic mission of course."

"You're lucky there are a couple here this morning. I was just about to assign them to the available medic-nins, but since you're here you get your pick." Kurenai swirled in her chair to open a filing cabinet and pulled out 3 folders. "They're all C ranked, so should be easy. One's just a day long, another's 4 days and the last one is at least 1 week. Any peak your fancy?" She smiled sheepishly waving the folders in the air in front of Sakura.

"I'll take the 4 day one, might as well get out of the village for a bit." Kurenai placed the red folder down on the table for Sakura to grab. "By the way," Sakura started, "I'm not sure if you've gotten it yet, but I'm now available for any medic missions. You'll probably get something from the Hokage, but I'm trying to get more medic-nin recruits. This is part of it, showing off my talents to the shinobi population you see." Sakura winked at Kurenai as she emphasized the last part of the sentence, "So make sure you assign me lots of missions when I'm back!"

"Sure." Kurenai laughed as Sakura made her way back out of the room folder in hand.

Finding a vacant bench in a park a short walk from the Hokage tower Sakura opened up the folder to read the details of her mission.

She was to accompany a team of two Chunin and one Jounin as they had to solve a crime in Keishi. The city leader had requested a skilled team to help their law enforcement solve a series of gruesome murders. They had yet to get a lead to who was causing the deaths of theses citizens and they hoped that the shinobi would have better luck. So far two men and four women had been found dead. The city leader had requested that a medic-nin come along as well since one of the women had been found seconds before her death and their civilian doctors had been unable to save her. He hoped that if they were able to save the next victim, they may be better able to figure out who was killing all their people.

She was supposed to meet her team at the village entrance at noon. Packing all the information back into the folder Sakura stood up off the bench and made her way home to prepare herself for the upcoming mission.

* * *

She was the first to arrive it seemed, though this wasn't unusual as she was exactly 30 minutes early. She planted herself down on a nearby rock, off to the side of the entrance and watched the various citizens trickle in and out of the village.

Two visible shinobi manned the entrance asking for papers, names, and reasons for visiting. Normally, you had to request, in advance, admittance into the village, and if your request was accepted it was on the list that the shinobi carried with them and you were easily ushered inside. Otherwise, those not on the list were always taken aside and questioned profusely. It was very rare to be allowed into the village without having placed the request weeks in advance.

As Sakura watched one of the Shinobi refused an old man likely because he hadn't been on the list. She felt bad for the man and was instantly happy she had never been stuck with gate duty. To keep the village safe the guards had to follow the rules and sometimes that involved sending back someone who likely would cause no harm.

She watched as the old man made his way back down the main road away from the village until he turned a corner at was lost from her eyes.

Minutes after the man disappeared behind the trees a middle-aged shinobi with graying hair walked towards the entrance. He was garbed in mission gear and when he saw her, he smiled shyly and changed his direction. Sakura got to her feet to greet him.

"Sakura Haruno," He began, a toothy grin still displayed on his face, "You're the medic we've been assigned?"

She nodded and began to take out the papers to show proof.

"Oh no!" He gestured wildly, his cheeks reddening with embarrassment, "I'm not the captain. Touma Itsuki, Chunin, nice finally to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you as well." She gave him a small smile before placing the mission details back into her backpack. "Sakura Haruno, though you already knew that."

"Yes, sorry about that. It's hard not to know who you are. Though I'm glad I finally get to go on a mission with you. I've heard great things!"

"Ah thank you… I hope I live up to your expectations."

Sakura was always a bit uncomfortable interacting with people like this. They always thought they knew all about her simply because they knew who she was, what she looked like, and what she did in public. She always felt like she had to put on a show for them, a different face, just so that they wouldn't be disappointed with the real her. The majority of the village thought they understood who she was, but only her friends did.

 _And Tiger…_

"Nonsense" Touma exclaimed, "You'll be great!"

The next to arrive was the other Chunin, a black-haired woman in her late 30s named Sara Niko. She greeted Touma warmly, the two clearly close friends, before gushing about Sakura just like Touma had. Sakura plastered a sweet smile on her face while secretly wishing she had taken the single day mission instead. Though both Sara and Touma seemed nice, she didn't want to be stuck with a couple of suck-ups for the next four days.

"I was stuck in the village through the whole war! It was dreadfully boring, guarding the wall day in and day out. I'm sure you had tones of interesting fights, right Sakura? Will you tell us a couple? It must have been so cool to be out there fighting with all the other villages." Sara rambled, and Sakura nodded along uncomfortably.

Both were clearly Chunin for life, and if the way they casually discussed the last great war was anything to go off, neither Sara nor Touma had ever been in any serious life-threatening battles.

Sakura sighed inwardly as Sara continued to ramble on with Touma interjecting comments here and there.

 _This was going to be long mission_.

"How was it like being on the team of the future Hokage? It must have been so cool. Did you know he was going to become Hokage when you were younger?" Sara asked looking at Sakura expectantly.

Realizing she actually had to answer Sakura stammered slightly, "Uh, yeah, I guess."

"OH! That's so cool!" Sara shouted and Touma smiled brightly nodding along.

Sara began to open her mouth, likely to ask another question, but was interrupted before she could get anything out.

"Itsuki, Niko."

Sakura turned along with the others towards the sound of the voice. Standing off to the side was the team captain. He was an average looking man who looked to be in his late 20s. His hair was a caramel brown and fell to his shoulders in soft waves. He had a strong, yet lean build and his skin was darkly tanned from the sun. When his gaze fell onto her, she noted that his eyes were a deep dark brown.

"Sakura Haruno?"

The questioning tone in his voice brought her back to reality. "Captain, sir." She scrambled up towards him pulling out her papers. "I've been assigned as the medic for this mission." She handed him her papers as per protocol.

He looked them over briefly before placing them into his own travel bag. "My name is Reo Yuuto, welcome to the team." He looked them over briefly before flashing them all a smile, "Shall we get going then? We've got a crime to solve."

* * *

The room was dark and small. Torches hung along the wall emitting an eerie golden glow. The walls were painted in black and in the place of the normal white trim, red dominated. The dark hardwood floor added another layer of mystery to the room. Yet the most unusual was the black casket that lay uplifted and open in the middle of the chamber.

There were only two men. One stood right in front of the casket his head hanging low staring unblinkingly at the figure that lay beneath. The other was kneeling, his head bowed. He knelt behind the other man as though awaiting a command.

"The physician claims it was a heart attack." The standing man began, his voice powerful echoing in the small room. "But he was healthy, young. He had his whole life ahead of him. I don't know how, but I know that _girl_ was somehow involved in his death. When I looked into her eyes that night, I felt my gut telling me something. I had a feeling something wasn't right, I should have listened." His hands clenched around a piece of clothing, a blue silk robe.

In the light of the dim room his eyes shone wide with anger and frustration. He clenched the robe tighter between his hands before smashing a fist on the side of the open casket. The wood groaned but did not break. Slowly he turned towards the kneeling man who was still motionless, head bowed down.

"Go to Keishi, use this." The standing man threw the blue robe at the kneeler but before it could hit him his hand snapped out and caught the fabric, his head still bowed. "Find the girl and bring her back to me." In the dim room the standing man's sinister smile shone wickedly. "I have a couple of questions for her."

The kneeling man got up to his feet and bowed once more, "Lord Jun."

As he turned to exit the room the light of the torches caught on his gleaming yellow eyes. Once turned he smiled maliciously and stalked out the room with only one thought in his head.

 _I've got prey to catch._


	3. Part Three

The smell of formaldehyde stung her eyes and irritated her nose. Sakura stared down at the dead woman, her body naked and covered in knife wounds. Examining a particularly deep cut that spread across the woman's abdomen, Sakura gritted her teeth.

"What is it?" Reo asked taking a step forward to stand beside her as she stared down at the body, her arms crossed in concentration.

"Well at first glance this woman died of blood loss, given the sheer number of cuts all over her body. Same with all the others." Sakura said, gesturing to the five other dead bodies that lay on metal tables in the bright fluorescently lit room. "But…"

"But what?" Reo pressed glancing down himself at the woman they stood in front of.

"I don't think they died of blood loss." Sakura continued, using her gloved hand to open up the woman's mouth to show Reo, "See how inflamed the tissue is, it's all red, like she had an allergic reaction. The others all have the same thing as well."

Sakura closed the woman's mouth and gestured to her throat where she had 8 vertical cuts from chin to collar bone. "And see these cuts here?"

At Reo's nod she continued, "I think they are self-inflicted."

She reached down and grabbed the woman's hand and gestured for Reo to come closer, "It's hard to tell with all the blood, but under her nails there's some of her own skin."

"So, you're suggesting she scratched herself hard enough to make those cuts?"

"Exactly, and the others did as well."

"Why would anyone do that?" He asked look looking around at the other dead bodies in the room.

"I have a couple of theories, but nothing concrete. I'd help if we could catch the next victim before they died, or right after. I'll be able to know more with fresh tissue."

She fingered the gloves pulling them off her hands and into the waste-bin as she turned to exit the room, Reo following closely behind.

"All of the attacks so far have been 2 days apart. If that keeps up, you should be getting your wish soon."

Sakura laughed as they strode down the hall and back up the stairs to the main foyer of the local hospital, "You make me sound so cynical! I'll do my best to save them too, you know."

"I know," he grinned and winked at her, "You're the best, aren't you?"

"Oh no!" She laughed, "I wouldn't want to take that title away from Lady Tsunade! Can you imagine what she would do to me?"

He smiled sheepishly, "Oh yes, I've heard lots of stories about her rage. Some even about when she's been angry with you"

"Ahhh…" Sakura blushed lightly, "Yeah, she can be really scary."

Sakura fell silent after that, and Reo did the same with a hint of a smile on his face as he led her out the building.

They'd been in Keishi for three days now and during that time she'd really hit it off with Reo. He was nice, genuine and he didn't treat her like a massive celebrity, although Sara and Touma had toned that down since the mission started. Sakura was pleased to find that her teammates were actually extremely friendly people that she could see herself becoming good friends with. It was a plus that the mission was relatively fast paced, with new clues popping up all the time, which helped keep her thoughts off a certain someone _._

She also admitted it was nice to have a relatively relaxing mission, compared to her most recent ones with ANBU. This time she was aiming to save lives instead of taking them and it soothed a part of Sakura's turbulent soul.

She followed absent-mindedly beside Reo as they made their way back to their inn, to confer with Sara and Touma about what she had discovered from examining the bodies.

* * *

Sakura sat at the bar, beside Sara, at one of Keishi's many questionable establishments, though this one seemed rather well cleaned and beautifully decorated. Even if her drink was a bit watered down, Sakura admitted that Sara hadn't chosen that bad of a place.

"Why did you want to come here again?" Sakura mumbled through her straw.

Sara gave her a side glance, "This is one of the best parts of going on out-of-town missions." She said, as she brought her drink up to her lips and took a nice long sip. "You get a whole new set of men to play with." She laughed, looking back at Sakura with a twinkle in her eye.

Sakura chuckled heartedly, what it must be like to be free like this. It sounded like something Ino would say.

"In the village you might see them again, but here it's like a free pass." Sara continued, "As you can tell I'm single and taking full advantage of it. The life of a shinobi shouldn't be spent holding back. I want to experience all there is to experience, because we both know death could come knocking any day."

Sakura found herself nodding along, she knew more than most how dangerous their lives were. For a split second she considered having a bit of fun herself, but her wounds were still too fresh. Not yet, she wasn't ready to move on from _him…_ Maybe not ever.

Instead she turned on her seat and decided to help Sara out a bit, that would still be fun. _Like going shopping_ , she snickered internally.

It was then that she spotted a man in the back corner. His back was turned to hers, but his presence demanded attention. Shoulder length hair, an almost white silver, wavy, falling nicely just above his broad shoulders. She could see the muscle definition beneath his shirt marking him as a shinobi.

She nudged Sara.

Following her gaze and a smile appeared on Sara's face, "Ohh, he looks like he's probably hot." she said, assessing the same silver-haired man.

"Why'd you need me to come if you were planning on going home with a guy anyways." Sakura asked still sipping on her straw, casually leaning against the bar.

"I don't like going alone to bars in cities I don't know. Touma hates that I do this, he thinks its demeaning." Sara groaned, "In the past I've taken Reo with me, but he usually gets side-tracked by a girl, which is no fun for me. You seemed like you wouldn't mind and might even help me." Sara smiled knowingly.

"Good guess." Sakura laughed, "and don't worry I got your back."

When they looked back, the man had turned around and was staring straight at them. Not surprising since Sara was beautiful, and Sakura had pink hair, which always seemed to grab people's attentions.

 _He is handsome_ , Sakura thought, _good for Sara_.

His skin was pale and mostly unflawed, except for the small scar in the shape of a crescent moon on his chin. Yet the scar was not his defining feature, that title was given to his piercing yellow eyes that sent shivers down her spine.

The man smiled, his white teeth gleaming in the dim bar as he started to make his way across the room towards them.

"Looks like you caught his eye," Sakura teased, "He's making his way over."

"Yeah," Sara replied, looking over at Sakura she winked, "He's really hot too. I'm going to feel him out, but I think he might be the lucky winner tonight."

"Guess I can get going?" Sakura hedged unsure of what more Sara wanted her to do.

"Can you stay a bit longer, I like a second opinion. You know, to make sure he's not a dangerous missing-nin or anything. If you sense something wrong just say, 'I wish they served food here.'"

"Okay got it." Sakura smiled.

It was nice to know that Sara was being careful, and that she knew it was dangerous to attract the attention of an unknown male shinobi outside the village. There were no guarantees he wasn't extremely dangerous.

As the man reached them Sara turned to face him fully. "I saw you girls staring at me, and I had to know why." His voice was smooth, a nice baritone, it ran over her body and sent more shivers down her spine.

"Your eyes caught my attention," Sara murmured, "They're breathtaking."

The man grinned again and leaned forwards to whisper in Sara's ear, "My best feature. Can I get you ladies a drink?"

Sakura shock her head and showed the man she was still finishing her own, before turning to the side to let Sara get all the attention. Sara on the other hand nodded eagerly and gestured for him to take the empty seat next to her. He did.

Sakura kept half an ear on their conversation for the next half hour. He seemed okay, a little intense if Sakura was honest but she wasn't the one going home with him tonight. There were no warning bells ringing in her head and so she nursed her drink while she waited for Sara to make the final decision to take him home.

She peaked up as Sara spoke, "Alright, I've got to freshen up in the washroom then we can go."

Sara got up off the chair and gave Sakura a wink before making her way to the washroom. Sakura smiled shyly at the man and then resumed sipping on her almost empty drink. A shuffling to her side told her he'd taken Sara's seat beside her.

"Your hair is so interesting." He whispered hoarsely. His deep voice reverberating through her.

He was awfully close, and she shot him a wary look.

Fast as lightning he reached forwards and pulled some strands up to his face. Inhaling deeply, he smelled her hair, letting it slowly slide back out between his fingers.

Sakura smiled awkwardly and leaned away from the man _._

 _That was really creepy,_ _why did he just smell my hair?_

The man only grinned widely at her.

Sara didn't need her anymore, so Sakura got up off the chair and made to leave but the man grabbed her arm and a tingling sensation swept through her body. _That's_ when all the alarm bells went off. All. At. Once.

 _Run_ , a voice said, _run NOW!_

But before she could leap away from the man his huge body pushed her back against the bar. His one hand gripped both her wrist tightly, locking them in place in front of her chest, and try as she might she could not get out of his grip.

She went to summon her chakra enhanced strength and push him off her, but nothing happened. Her strength failed her. Her chakra failed her; it was not responding. She pulled and pulled trying to tear it out of her coils. Will it to do something. _Anything_.

Nothing happened. It just flowed on, coursing through her body, unaware of the danger she was in.

"Hello there," The man whispered roughly into her ear. "I've been looking for you." He inhaled deeply again, letting his nose run up the side of her face, lightly, tenderly.

Sakura pleaded for Sara to come back, to see this and go get help. If this man had been able to neutralize her then only Reo stood a chance.

"You've changed your appearance." The man murmured, his lips just beside her ear. "I almost missed you."

 _What was he talking about?_ Sakura wondered frantically.

"I-I- think you have the wrong girl," she stammered.

Realizing he'd let her speak she was about to shout for Sara before he placed a hand roughly against her mouth.

"Speak again and I'll slit your friends throat." Somehow, she didn't doubt that he'd be able to do it.

Sakura was scared for the first time in a long time. Her chakra had failed her, and she didn't know what to do.

Her mind spun, trying to think of some way out of the situation without the use of her chakra. He was stronger than her without her enhanced strength and easily kept her in place as she struggled against his grip. Maybe she could get a leg up between his legs? Or if she could just get one of her hands free, she could hit a pressure point in his neck.

She'd been a shinobi before getting her superhuman strength. She could do this without her chakra. She was Sakura god-damned _Haruno_ , she didn't need chakra to save her. She still had her most powerful ability, her mind.

A plan finally in place, she prepared herself to act…And froze completely. Terror filled her as she beheld what he had taken out of his pocket.

A blue silk robe.

 _Her_ blue silk robe.

His one hand still gripping both of her wrists together he brought the fabric up to his nose and inhaled deeply. Smiling maniacally, he leaned down again and pressed his nose into her hair.

"Nope," he laughed, low and brutal, "I've got the right girl."

 _Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!_

This time her mind was racing frantically. Disbelief was the prominent emotion. How had this happened? Jun must have figured out that his son's death was _not_ an accident. But for this man to actually be able to find her! There was no way. This was pure luck on his part. And on top of that, how had he been able to neutralize her chakra?

Distantly she felt a small pain in her stomach and realized that he'd injected her with something. The only part of her mind still able to process anything tried frantically to get her chakra to help burn away the sedative, but there was no response and she fell deeper into despair.

She was afraid and lost, yet she clung onto the small hope that at least he hadn't recognized her and her village would be safe. Those thoughts soon came to a blinding halt as the man continued with an even greater smile on his face. His teeth, blindingly white, the only thing she could focus on as her vision blurred.

"Who would have guessed that Sakura Haruno moonlighted as a prostitute from Keishi."

* * *

Reo ran down the dark street, Touma on his heals as they rushed to where they'd felt Sara's chakra flair. He hoped that nothing was wrong, but he felt uneasy. There had been no other chakra flairs, from Sara or from Sakura who was with her. Maybe they'd found another victim. Yet Reo had a feeling that something had gone terribly, terribly wrong.

As they came to a halt in front of the building, he noticed that the area was deserted. No one lingered in the streets, not even the homeless that you could usually find everywhere.

"Alright." He told Touma, "I don't know what's inside but be prepared in case there's a fight."

"Yes, sir."

Reo pushed open the door of the empty bar and his stomach dropped as a pit formed in his throat.

Sara lay across the floor, her neck slit open, a kunai clenched tightly in her hand. Her eyes were still open in disbelief, but she was unseeing, dead.

Behind him Touma sobbed as he beheld the scene.

Her shirt had been torn open revealing her lean stomach, now marred with a bloody message carved out of her skin.

" _Beware Konoha, Lord Jun will come for you next."_

The words were dried, the blood already crusty and turning brown. Reo approached hesitantly, first he inspected the entire room, every inch, making sure there were no hidden traps. Then he summoned Chie, a coyote.

"Where is Sakura?" Reo demanded, "Find her!"

Chie began to search, nose pressed to the ground. When the coyote was finished, she came back, sat in front of Reo and whined sadly.

"What did she say?" Touma asked his voice rough from holding back tears.

"He took her," Reo growled, "The same man who did this to Sara, took Sakura. Chie said she smelled a sedative, so Sakura's probably still alive."

Touma swore, and leaned down to close Sara's eyes, "What do we do now?"

"I don't know." Reo closed his eyes and pressed his hand to his forehead in concentration before he began to speak his thoughts, "This is definitely unrelated to our current mission. Jun is one of the five major Crime Lords in the Elemental Nations. How Sakura got involved with him, I have no idea. What I do know is that we can't go after her just the two of us. That said, the fastest way to get a message back to the village would be for us to go back. It's only a couple of hours by run, but that would also mean abandoning the current mission." Reo looked over at Touma who was still leaning down beside Sara his face grim. "What do you want to do?"

"We go back." Touma stared, unblinking, at Sara's slit throat, "We don't abandon our teammates. I know Sara didn't abandon Sakura. If she had time to send up a chakra flair, then she had time to run. But she didn't, and we can't either."

They carefully placed Sara into a scroll, covering up the message with a shirt. While Touma went back to the inn to pack up everyone's stuff Reo went to the village leader and told him of the situation, promising that Konoha would send another team who would likely be here by tomorrow afternoon. The man was not too happy but seemed to understand the urgency.

They ran as fast as they could knowing the longer they took the more likely the trail would run cold. It took them the rest of the night and they arrived outside the gate of Konoha as the sky began to loosen its grip on the night.

* * *

Naruto slowly trudged up the stairs, he had taken to waking up shortly before dawn and getting started on the mountain of paper work that Lady Tsunade had started piling onto his desk. It was all part of her _'plan',_ as she said, to teach him how to be Hokage. Naruto was 100% convinced she was just lazy and was adding her own paperwork to his. Though he would much rather be spending his time training or going on missions, he knew that that part of his life was over.

If he was honest, he was starting to enjoy this routine, in the morning he would work on the paperwork at his desk in the Hokage's office. Tsunade would come in sometime around noon and they would go over various things together. By the afternoon he was usually free to go to the training field with Sasuke or Sai, if they were around.

He was in the office when two rugged shinobi came rushing in. They looked exhausted and haunted. He finished signing a paper and looked up from the desk.

The younger man strode across the room to stand in front of him. His face was tense, his eyes strained, "Is the Hokage in?" He asked, voice rough.

Naruto put down his pen and crossed his arms, "No it's just me right now."

The man looked back at his companion hesitantly. Annoyed, Naruto stood up and tried to sound as demanding as possible, "What happened?"

When the man hesitated again, Naruto groaned. "Panda, get the Hokage," He said and sat back down in the chair running a hand through his thick hair.

Until he was sworn into office, it wasn't all that surprising that the shinobi wanted to wait for the Hokage if this was something important.

Minutes later Tsunade strode into the office her face tired and haggard after being woken up early in the morning by the hidden ANBU he'd sent to get her.

"What is it?" She demanded coming to stand beside the desk her arms crossed, her face scrunched up in anger.

The shinobi and his companion bowed low, "Hokage. We've brought unfortunate news."

Tsunade didn't answer, instead she only raised an eyebrow and waited for them to continue. Naruto watched dumbfound at the authority she managed to convey in the simple action.

The older shinobi came forwards from the back and took out a large scroll from his pack. Gently he unrolled it and placed a palm in the middle of the paper.

"Release"

Out of the smoke a body appeared, a young woman. Her throat had been slit but other than that she remained unharmed. Or so he thought. Then the bottom of her shirt was lifted, and Naruto beheld what had been carved into the skin of her abdomen.

Tsunade frowned, "Explain." When they hesitated, she shouted, her patience gone, "NOW!"

"Yes, Lady Tsunade." The younger one bowed again, "We were on a mission in Keishi when two of my subordinates went to a bar for a drink. I was at our inn when I felt her chakra flair." –he gestured to the dead woman– "when we got to the scene there was no-one there. We found her like this on the ground, and my other subordinate taken."

He hesitated once more, discreetly glancing at Naruto before he continued quietly, "It was Sakura. The man took Sakura."

Naruto's hands clenched, fingernails digging into palms. He was furious, someone had kidnapped Sakura. His eyes flashed, flickering from blue to red as he tried to reign in his anger.

"Naruto" Tsunade spoke quietly. She looked at him, her eyes pleading, _relax_ they seemed to say.

So, he turned and went to the back of the room to look out the window. He crossed his arms and grabbed at the skin of his upper arm, tightly, in hope of distraction as he stared out into the slowly brightening day. The sun shone bright just above the tree lines casting the village in a golden glow. He watched as Konoha slowly began to awaken, only half paying attention to the conversation behind him.

"We want to go after her." The young man exclaimed, "We came back because we can't do it alone."

"It's a good thing you came back." Tsunade snapped. "If you'd gone after them, you'd likely be dead now too. At least you had some sense there. If someone was able to capture Sakura, you are way out of your league and be that as it may, even with help you are in no shape to go on a rescue mission. I'm sorry but I can't allow it."

She paced the room, arms crossed tightly against her body, all signs of the earlier drowsiness gone. "I'll send a replacement team for your mission in Keishi but for now you're dismissed. Go home. Get some sleep. Mourn your teammate. I'll take care of Sakura." With a wave of her hand she dismissed them.

When they were alone once again Naruto turned back towards Tsunade and asked the question that had been burning inside him since the body had been revealed, "Why would Jun be after Sakura?"

He was frantic, worried for his best friend and confused, deeply confused. Running his hands through his hair he looked to Tsunade once more, eyes pleading for an explanation.

Tsunade only sighed and gestured for him to sit. "There's something you need to know."

Naruto was afraid he already knew, but he did as told.

Tsunade took a deep breath and slowly took a seat in the chair beside him. "You were both deceived, but it's time you knew… When you were in ANBU we put you with Sakura."

Silence.

The shock of those words seared him to his soul. He didn't know what to think let alone string a coherent sentence.

When he didn't answer Tsunade continued her voice distant as he fell deeper into the realm of his subconscious, "Sakura was Falcon, Naruto."

His mind was spinning, and pieces were beginning to click in his brain. It made _so_ much sense, and yet he _couldn't_ believe it. He _hadn't_ believed it until Tsunade had said it.

Like an explosion he couldn't contain it anymore.

His eyes flickered to red, the pupils elongating into a black slit, his nails sharped to lethal points and broke the skin in his palm as his hands clenched tightly into fists. Along his mouth, his canines grew, and deep scars appeared on his cheeks. He stood up off the chair and he _roared_.

His cry echoed across the village. Aguish and rage, his howl awoke the world.

Tsunade stood to the side, her eyes damp with tears as she witnessed Naruto fall to his knees his head bowed down and his hands fisted into his hair. She was missing something. Naruto had never acted like this, not for anyone. He didn't cry, he shook from the rage that threatened to tear free of him.

 _Sakura was Falcon._

 _Sakura was Falcon._

 _Sakura_ _was_ _Falcon_.

The thought was like a never-ending wheel constantly turning over in his head, only interrupted by that fact that she had been taken. He _loved_ her for god's sake, he was supposed to protect her, and now she'd been taken. Taken from him.

He tried to focus on his breathing.

One breath in, one breath out.

One breath in, one breath out.

He couldn't lose it now. Not when she could still be saved.

Moments later he looked up at Tsunade, his eyes now back to their brilliant bright blue.

"I love her," he confessed.

Tsunade dropped to her knees beside him, "I know. I love her too."

"No" Naruto protested, he looked Tsunade in the eyes. His gaze burning into her, filled with… filled with… _a desperate anguish._

"I _love_ her." The words tore free from him, bursting with unchecked emotion.

Tsunade sobbed as she understood. _Oh god_ , _oh god_. She was struck the realization that they would go to war over her.

Tsunade's head whirled as she dissected the implications of this situation. If Jun knew that Konoha had been involved he was going to demand retribution. Sakura's head in exchange for his son that they'd killed. Everyone knew that Sakura was like a daughter to her. But Tsunade couldn't do it. Even if she knew Sakura would want to be sacrificed for the good of the village, Naruto would go to the ends of the earth for that girl. Jun might then call upon the might of all five crime lords and god knows how terrifying that war would be. The entirety of the underground crime world against _one_ village.

But it wasn't over yet, they could get Sakura back before she was delivered to Jun, before he knew about Konoha's involvement.

Composing herself she got up and hauled Naruto up off the ground. Just in time too as Kakashi burst through the door not a second later, with Sasuke on his heels.

"What's going on?!" He demanded, his voice tight with uncertainty as he glanced over at Naruto who now sat, staring at the wall, unseeing.

Kakashi glanced down a second later to take in the dead woman who lay on the ground, her stomach still exposing the bloody message.

When no one answered right away it was Sasuke who spoke, "What happened?"

Tsunade didn't answer, instead she strode to her desk and sat down behind it. Reaching into her drawer she pulled out a bottle of sake and took a nice long drink. Slamming it down on the table, she finally spoke, "Who's in the village right now that's capable of a high-level rescue mission." She looked to Kakashi knowing he'd have the answer.

"Sasuke, Sai, Shikamaru, Yamato, Kiba, Fumio, Daiki, Hiroki, and myself."

Placing her hands down in front of her on the desk she took a moment to think. No one spoke while Tsunade made up a plan in her mind. Then Naruto mumbled something to quietly for anyone to hear.

"What?" Sasuke said turning to look at Naruto.

Naruto stood up off the chair his hands healed but still smeared with blood from when he'd pierced them earlier.

"I'm going." He stated. Looking Tsunade dead in the eyes begging her to challenge him, "I'm going."

Naruto was eerily calm. His brain had stopped running so rampantly, now only focused on the one thing that mattered, getting Sakura back.

It was Sasuke that broke the stare down between the Hokage and the future-Hokage. "Naruto you can't go on a rescue mission, you're about the become Hokage."

Naruto turned to look at Sasuke and his eyes softened before he whispered almost inaudibly, "It's Sakura."

Shocked, Sasuke and Kakashi's faces flew to look at Tsunade who nodded. Her eyes now strained and sad. But before either of them began their bombardment of questions, she put up her hand gesturing for them to be quiet. "I'll explain everything at the briefing in ten minutes, get your stuff, you'll be leaving right after."

Looking to an empty wall where an ANBU hid Tsunade added, "Cat, get Sai he'll be going too." She glanced over at Naruto whose clenched jaw was the only sign of his inner turmoil, "Do you have everything you need?"

He nodded, and she turned back to her drink.

Exactly seven minutes later all four men stood in front of her desk. The dead women had been moved to the hospital, and Naruto had shifted back to the window and now stared out into the distance, his brow furrowed and his fingers twitching ever so slightly. He was likely listening, but it wasn't to him that Tsunade addressed.

"What I'm about to tell you is highly classified," Tsunade began taking the time took look each one in the eye. Kakashi's lone eye was emotionless, lazy looking, but Tsunade had known the man a long time and the small twitch she noticed indicated he was just as anxious as Naruto to get going. Sasuke's face was hard, the small ridges that donned his forehead indicating his anger and frustration. Sai face was neutral, look as she might, she could see no outward signs of emotions.

"For the past two years Sakura has been a member of ANBU." Assessing each of them she was surprised to find that it was Kakashi who took the news hardest. His posture changed from impatience, to confusion, then to one of anger. Though he didn't say anything she could see the disapproval on his face that she had allowed Sakura to take up such a dangerous position, nonetheless she continued, "About three weeks ago Sakura underwent a mission to eliminate Jun's son, she was successful. Yet for reasons unknown we believe Jun figured out that the death wasn't accidental."

She paused and took another long sip from her sake, this day was turning out to be a long one, "Just a couple of minutes ago two shinobi who had been on a mission with Sakura brought back the news that she has been kidnapped. Whoever took her knows that Konoha was involved with Jun's son's death. This mission is classified, no one can know that Sakura was taken, or why she was taken. You are to bring her back here before she's delivered to Jun, otherwise things will get complicated and we might not be able to get her back. You must understand the village _will_ sacrifice her for the sake of avoiding another war" –Naruto growled lowly and Tsunade shot him a look– "and there will be nothing Naruto nor I can do stop it."

"Like _hell_ there won't be!" Naruto hissed, "I'll kill them all if I have too!"

Kakashi and Sasuke exchanged looks in the face of Naruto's outburst. Tsunade inclined her head slightly staring them each in the eyes, giving them a silent permission. Though she couldn't say it out-loud, she wanted them to do everything they could to get Sakura back, even if that meant killing the whole compound so that no one talked again.

Tsunade gently place a hand on his tense back, "Naruto."

He shook it off whipping around to face the room, "Are you done? Can we get going?" his face showed signs of the fox, small scars still graced his cheeks and eyes were a dark shade of brown, half-way between blue and red, the pupil slightly elongated.

Sighing sadly, Tsunade nodded, "Be careful all of you. This man was able to capture Sakura and easily kill one of our Chunins with a slit throat. We know nothing of his abilities." She leaned forwards and handed a small slip of paper to Kakashi, "You're in charge."

Looking down and reading the name of the bar at which Sakura had been taken Kakashi nodded and then burned the paper. Letting the ashes slowly crumple to the floor, he kept his fist clenched tightly a second longer than necessary before he lifted his headband exposing his sharingan eye.

Lips pressed together tightly, Kakashi spoke, "Lets go."

A blink of an eye later the five figures in the Hokage's office flickered out of existence. Tsunade leaned back, the bottle in hand and downed the rest of it. She swivelled in her chair and stared out at the rising sun, the lump in her stomach tightening.

* * *

The world passed around her, blurry and unfocused. Distantly, she felt a deep pain in her stomach where something continually pressed against her abdomen. Her cloudy gaze caught on a brown object, but…then it was green… and then brown again?

It confused her.

Her head felt heavy and wrong. The world had started to get brighter, but she didn't understand how it worked. Things were moving fast and every time she tried to focus on anything it refused to stay still long enough for her to make out what it was.

Sakura knew something was wrong with her. Yet she couldn't make herself care. Her senses were dull, and she didn't mind. Even after what she now realized was a shoulder suddenly jabbed hard into her stomach, eliciting a pained moan from the back of her throat.

Suddenly the world stopped moving and she could see that the green she stared at was the small bunches of grass, and the accompanying brown was a dirt road.

She cried out in pain, the sensation suddenly vivid, as the ground unexpectedly collided with her body. The grass tickled her nose, causing her to sneeze and she cried out again in surprise as the action pinched her tender stomach.

Moving her arms, she tried to get into a more comfortable position but found them to be bound together across her back, _why was that?_ Her legs were also similarly bound based on the sensation. A set of brown boots appeared at the edge of her vision and she strained her head to look up at the figure.

Backgrounded by the rising sun, he appeared dark and wholly threatening as he stared down at her.

"Looks like you're awake," the man mused, and her brain tried desperately to identify why the voice was familiar.

When he leaned down to analyze her his vivid yellow eyes were like a punch in the gut. All at once everything came bursting back, her memory and her mind fully intact.

She scrambled to get away. Ignoring the pain in her stomach, she rolled until she was on her bottom. Then, using her core strength, she got into a sitting position before using her legs to push herself away from the man.

"Hello, sweetheart." He didn't bother looking worried that she might be able to escape.

Sakura tested her chakra and found it still unreachable. Glancing around quickly she realized there was nowhere for her to go.

"Who are you?" She prodded, "What have you done to me?"

"The name's Riichi… You shinobi rely too much on chakra and are quite easy to kill once it's taken away." He taunted, taking a step closer to where she huddled against a tree. "What I want to know is why you've woken up so quickly. That sedative was supposed to last for three days and you're awake not even six hours later. I know you still don't have your chakra because otherwise you wouldn't still be here curled in a ball like a scared little rabbit." He laughed horribly, the sound disgusting in Sakura's ears.

Sakura didn't want to answer, but it hardly seemed important now, what was more important was to keep him talking so she could figure a way out of this situation.

"I'm Sakura Haruno," She answered like that was an answer in itself, which it kind of was. "I'm Lady Tsunade's apprentice, she's a Queen of poisons. I've been building up my resistance to poisons and sedatives since I was 13, and I've built up quite the tolerance." She smirked up at him, "You'd have to use at least 10x the normal amount to get me." She laughed and spat in his face when he reached down to grab her.

She tried to twist her body away from him, but he grabbed her by the waist and plucked her back over his shoulder.

"I only have one sedative left," He ground out as she struggled against his grip, "I'm happy to use it right now," he threatened, "Or you can behave, and I'll let you stay awake the rest of the way."

She stilled in his arms and her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why?"

"Because I'm bored." He retorted, "and it's not like you can escape anyways."

Her mind ran, either he was very, very arrogant, or he was actually powerful enough not to be worried about her. She still hadn't figured out how he'd taken away her ability to mold chakra. She huffed and didn't give him an answer.

"I'll take your silence as acceptance then." He turned and started to walk down the path.

Inside Sakura sighed in relief. She eyed the small piece of fabric she'd left on the ground beside the tree. While she'd been playing the scared little girl, she'd actually been ripping up a piece of her shirt to leave behind. With her legs up, the view had been blocked from Riichi. A rescue team would hopefully be sent after her, and she was counting on them to notice it.

Suddenly she froze, and one clear thought permeated her body.

 _Was Sara still alive?_

She was afraid to ask Riichi. She was afraid of the answer, because she felt she already knew it. She dearly hoped that the girl had had the right sense to run back to Reo once she'd noticed that Sakura had been taken. Yet in the brief time that Sakura had gotten to know the girl she knew that it was likely not the case. Did she really want to know? Did she want to be the cause of more death? As a medic this was the one thing that hurt.

Every. Single. Time.

There had been a time when she'd told herself that she would grow out of it, and that eventually she would see enough death that it wouldn't hurt anymore. She'd stopped telling herself that a long time ago.

Steeling her stomach, she finally decided not to ask. Better to live in delusion for a bit longer.

As though hearing her internal dilemma Riichi spoke once more, "You haven't asked about your little kunoichi friend."

She didn't deign him a response. The silence stretched out between them, and Sakura allowed it, revelled in it. She wasn't going to play this game with him.

He smacked her hard on her bottom. Scaring the shit out of her and causing her stomach to again brush up against his shoulder. Gritting her teeth, she struggled to keep in her groan. When had she gotten this injury? She couldn't remember.

"I'm not letting you stay awake so that can ignore me." Riichi groaned, "Don't you want to know what happened to your friend?"

"No." Her reply was instantaneous and her tone hard.

He spanked her butt again, hard, leaving her with a painful tingling sensation.

"Don't touch me." She snarled through her teeth.

"You have no power here." His voice was angry, and she sensed that he was wholly serious. "I can do whatever I want."

She was instantly glad that she was tossed over his shoulder like bag of potatoes and she didn't have to stare into his yellow eyes.

"If I want to rape you, torture you, or do anything, anything at all to you, I can." His hands gripped the sides of her legs and she struggled to keep a pained moan from escaping her throat. His grip was tight, he was so unbelievably strong.

"So, if I say talk, you fucking talk _bitch_."

She nodded absentmindedly, no matter that it hurt her pride. That didn't matter right now. Her only goal at the moment was to survive. Stay awake, and maybe she could figure out a way to escape.

Though she had left that piece of fabric on the ground, she refused to allow herself to luxury of waiting for someone to rescue her. She could damn well rescue herself. Well she truly hoped she could, because there might not even be anyone coming.

"I don't want to know what you did to her." Sakura's voice was small, and she fought with herself for every word.

"Too bad! I'm going to tell you anyways." He laughed cruely, revelling in her discomfort and terror.

"She was a cute little thing and honestly I wish I'd had the luxury to really enjoy her pain, but we were in a bit of a rush you and I."

Sakura felt herself fall deeper and deeper into despair as Riichi described how he'd tied Sara up and carved a message into her very skin. She'd been awake the entire time and Sakura's heart twisted at the thought of how unimaginably excruciating that would have been for the young woman.

Riichi laughed maniacally as he told her he'd slit Sara's throat and had let her drown in her own blood. She tuned him out when he began to talk passionately about how beautiful her pain had sounded and how sweetly her blood had smelled. This man was disgusting, thoroughly revolting. She wanted to puke. He took his pleasure from the pain of others and she could only imagine what other unspeakable things he's done.

Slowly she began to plan his death.

Glancing around she noticed that they were likely a third of the way between Keishi and Jun's Compound. She was suddenly glad that this was all happening in Fire Country because she knew the land very well. Based on her estimate they would be there either early tomorrow morning, if they travelled through the night, or mid-day tomorrow, if they didn't.

"That damned bitch did get a little signal out though. Maybe someone will be dumb enough to come after you and I'll get a new subject to play with."

His words turned her blood to ice. She suddenly decided she really didn't want anyone coming to rescue her. They wouldn't be prepared, and he'd kill them. He'd kill them brutally and without remorse. Maybe if she could get a message to anyone who might be following, she could warn them away.

She didn't understand how this man had gotten so totally under her skin that she feared for her rescuer's success. Kakashi, if he was sent because of his tracking abilities, was unbelievably powerful. She knew that.

She _knew_ that.

Yet, she also knew that getting taken by surprise in a life or death battle could very easily spell death. She'd been taken by surprise and look at her now. She'd become too arrogant and she feared her friends had also.

She had to get out of this situation on her own. Figure out how he managed to block her chakra. That was the key. If she could get her chakra back, she would have a chance at killing him, and she had to kill him.

There was no choice.

Even without her, if he managed to bring back the news that Sakura Haruno had been the prostitute with Yasuo when he died then village would become implicated and that could cause a war.

There had already been so much war and so much loss, Neji, Ino's dad, and so many others. She would do everything she could to prevent another war, to prevent further deaths.

As the day rolled by Sakura's mind whirled. After a while, Riichi stopped talking about blood, torture and death and he engaged her in conversation. She answered his questions half-heartedly, only enough to save herself from his wrath. She spent the majority of her concentration on analyzing the last 12 hours. She even made a point to ask him some questions, subtly of course, to try and figure him out.

When they stopped for the night, Sakura had a theory for his how his technique might work. As she settled against a tree as far from him as she could get, she hoped, and pleaded with the universe that she was right.

She feigned sleep. Closing her eyes, even if all her instincts screamed at her not to. She evened her breath gradually and allowed her figure to slowly slump over, as one naturally would when falling asleep. She listened closely as Riichi slowly rustled about, before finally settling down himself. She estimated it took a whole hour before his breath evened out, and she was fully convinced he was asleep. She waited another half an hour before risking opening her eyes.

They had no fire, only the light of the moon illuminated the small clearing that they had set up in. Thankfully, it was a full moon. Her eyes adjusted to the light quickly and she scanned the area, letting out a silent breath when she saw that he was indeed asleep.

As silently as she could, she twisted her body and after a small struggle managed to bring her bound hands to her front. Now that she could see the knots, she tested them again and found them to be snug, but not impossible. Slowly she worked her hands, careful to be as quiet as possible. After what seemed like an eternity the rope fell limp to the ground. Her bound legs were quick work afterwards and before long she was silently creeping away from the clearing.

She'd decided that the first step was to get away from Riichi. She would regroup a safe distance from the man and organize a plan of attack to kill him.

She climbed a tree a short distance from the clearing and settled on a high branch that had a view into the clearing. Once seated against the trunk she allowed herself to take a breath. She watched Riichi from her viewport high in the trees for a good while to see if he noticed her absence. When nothing happened for over half an hour, she turned her thoughts inwards.

Internally, she prodded at her chakra coils and sighed in relief when she felt a small flicker of response. She'd realized earlier in the day that it was Riichi himself that was blocking her access to her chakra.

It was the only thing that made sense.

She'd lost her chakra before he'd injected her with the sedative, so that had been easily ruled out. He hadn't made any hand signs that normally indicated the beginning of a justu. She'd decided that the most likely cause was through skin contact with Riichi, some kind of bloodline.

It was the only thing that made sense.

Whatever this was, his ability, it was unique to him, she was sure. The scientific part of her yearned to dissect him slowly to figure out how exactly he was able to completely bar her of her chakra. Based on his misestimate of her ability to metabolize the sedative she'd also made the assumption that she would recover much faster than he likely expected. That had been the biggest risk in her plan, that his ability was not wholly separate from the body's metabolism. She sent out a thanks to Lady Tsunade for turning her body into a machine. Though her chakra coils weren't fully open to her yet, she could feel her access to them growing by the minute, if her estimates were correct, she'd have full contact in an hour.

She spent the next hour fighting sleep while she stared down at the sleeping figure in the clearing. Her muscles groaned and twitched as she forced them to hold the position high in the trees. Afraid that any movement would wake the dangerous man, she gritted her teeth as she felt her muscles cramp up. Fighting the discomfort, she continued to hold vigil over the clearing until she felt her was chakra fully respond.

Slowly and quietly, she jumped down from the tree and crept silently across the forest floor. While she ambled through the forest, she lost sight of the clearing and the sleeping figure within it. As she approached the camp, she ducked behind a cluster of ferns to make sure her target still lay in the spot she'd left him.

She'd easily decided on engaging with him from a distance, least he neutralize her chakra again. She'd start with a thrown kunai to the head, and if that didn't work, she had a small collection of long range jutsus she could use.

Pulling down a large leaf she strained her eyes to peer into the camp. Silently stepping out of the fern bush she pressed her hand against one of her hidden seal compartments that she'd gotten sown into her uniform. With a light puff, that sounded as loud a gunshot in the silent dark night, a kunai fell into her hand. Her heart started to speed up and she began to sweat. One shot. She extended her arm and with a flick of her wrist threw the weapon towards the slumped sleeping man.

A loud 'thunk' resonated across the forest and in a blast of air white smoke appeared.

 _Where did he go? SHIT!_

She stepped further away from the ferns and began to take a wider look at the clearing when she froze in her step.

"Looking for me sweetheart?"

His breath was slimy against her neck and his bare hand on her arm burned her. His grip tightened on her arm, nails digging into her skin, and blood began to spill down the length of her arm. He pulled her arm up and back.

Sakura did nothing, could do nothing, as he lightly licked the pooling blood.

"What sort of punishment should you get for escaping, then trying to kill me?" He paused savoring her terror, "I wonder if your screams sound as good as your blood tastes?"


	4. Part Four

He'd tied Sakura down between two trees. She was splayed out, with both arms up pulled in opposite directions and both legs stretched apart. She was still standing on her own, but she had a feeling that would soon change.

Riichi laughed as he began to undo his pack, his yellow eyes gleaming in the light of the moon.

"Thank goodness you tried to escape sweetheart." He droned on as he pulled out a sleek and shiny scalpel. She swallowed shallowly at the sight of the sharp edge. "If you hadn't tried anything, I'd have been embarrassed for you, _Sakura_. Shinobi seem to be getting worse and worse nowadays if this is what the best they have to offer."

She didn't know how he'd known she'd escaped. She'd been monitoring him throughout and he'd looked sound asleep. She'd underestimated him, and she cursed herself for the foolish mistake.

"We still have a couple of hours before we have to head out and so, my dear, we are going to have a bit of fun." He approached her, crooked smile shining with madness. "I mean, I'm going to have fun, I'm not so sure about you."

Sakura struggled with her bindings as he brought the scalpel to her neck. Her chakra had once again been cut off from her reach and she was no match for his tight knots that had already begun to chaff angrily against her skin.

Riichi leaned in and the light of the moon caught his yellow eyes. She tried to look away, but he pulled her face to his, thin fingers digging painfully into her jaw.

"Where should I start?" He paused, and his hot breath washed against her face.

Sakura heaved, disgusted, but there was nothing in her stomach to dispel.

"The face?"

His hand holding the scalpel pressed softly against the skin of her jaw and she felt a warm trickle run down her neck.

"Should I carve up that pretty face of yours?"

She struggled to breathe. Even though she knew he wouldn't kill her, she was scared. So scared. She'd never been this terrified in her life. To be so completely powerless like this it was reminiscent of dark times before she'd gotten her shit together as a shinobi. She'd sworn back then that she would never feel like that again.

His fingers moved away from her face and began to trail lightly down her front. When Riichi reached the bottom of her shirt he giggled madly before tearing it off her body.

"I've always had a fascination with stomachs." His voice was light, that of an artist examining a painting that completely puzzled, yet excited him. "Especially shinobi, with stomachs so flat and so… _tempting_." The scalpel had come to rest against the skin right above her belly button. "I think I'll start here."

The words spiked fear through her.

He laughed again, and she imagined he could smell the terror leaking from her pores as she struggled with renewed vigor against the bonds. He lifted the scalpel and she closed her eyes afraid to watch as he began to cut her up. Instead she felt the night breeze tickle her bare breasts as he cut away her bra. Her upper body now completely exposed to the air, to _him_.

She felt sick to her stomach again as she watched his lecherous gaze slide to her chest. It was then that she didn't know what would be worse. To be raped or tortured. Sakura had a feeling Riichi had _both_ in mind tonight.

Riichi glanced up at her face and caught her gaze, eyes twinkling with madness. He smiled then, his blinding white teeth shining in the moonlight.

"Let's begin."

He started with a slice down her middle, from just beneath the collar bone to her pant buckle. To test her sensitivity, he'd said. He'd done it slowly, inching down while completely focused on her face. She didn't deign him any reaction. She'd clenched her teeth and swallowed her scream as the scalpel had cut into the sensitive skin between her breasts and bellow her belly button.

"Tough bird, aren't you sweetheart." He finally said, as blood dripped down her body from the deep cut. "Well… I guess not that tough if I managed to capture you twice."

The sound of his laughter was like a slap to her face and to her pride. He was right. Sakura couldn't believe she'd allowed herself to be captured a second time. She hung her head refusing to look at her torturer as he grinned gleefully.

"Ahh… Don't like being reminded of that do you?" He sneered, grabbing her chin once more. "You're weak."

Keeping her eyes down, she avoided his dark gaze until his fingers tightened so much that she knew he would leave bruises.

"Admit it you're weak."

His eyes burned into her own, tears blurring her vision as she held her tongue despite the pain. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

"Don't want to admit it? No matter, I'll make sure everyone knows anyways."

The cold sensation of metal kissing the tight skin of her stomach was her first clue at his next actions. Then, he knelt down in front of her and that's when the real pain began.

Slowly, he wrote. In big block letters an inch below her bellybutton, 'W… E… A… K…'

The pain was intense, blinding. She quivered and bit down hard on her tongue to stop herself from vocalizing her agony. Yet this wound was deeper then simple flesh. Sakura felt the truth of the statement sear her very soul. How was this man able to reach so deeply into her mind and extract the one thing she'd always struggled with?

Within herself, she saw her struggles. She saw the burden she'd been on their first mission to wave country and the burden she'd been during their first exam. She saw herself work so hard to catch up, but then to be left behind in the dirt. All of her insecurities, she saw them all. She was weak to have been captured so easily, weak to have allowed Sara to die. Weak to not have admitted to herself how she felt about Tiger. Weak. Weak. Weak.

Tears spilled from her eyes, leaving wet marks down her cheeks, yet she remained silent.

"Still no sound." Riichi groaned, "Come on sweetheart I want to hear you sing."

Lifting himself back up he moved behind her, trailing a finger along her skin as he surveyed her body like an artist surveys his sculpture.

Soft lips hovered just inches from her ear, "I guess we'll be moving on to bigger and better things."

She felt the bite of the cold scalpel against her spine and a shiver, unrelated to the chill night air, erupted across her body. Sakura readied herself but couldn't stop the cry that escaped her lips as he pressed hard and slashed.

He leaned forwards and she felt his sick breath tickle her neck, "Better," and without warning he slashed again.

She fell forwards against her bindings and hung her head.

The motion was similar to whippings, yet the sensation wholly different. The scalpel was extremely sharp and at every pass Riichi hit and sliced across her back hitting the bone of her spine, but not breaking it. The skin thin and highly sensitive, she felt each slice as if it were a dozen lashings.

Sakura screamed at every cut.

Even after she tried so hard to keep her lips sealed the pain was so intense, she couldn't stop the raw shrieks from bubbling up out of her. Though she knew she shouldn't she'd begun to count each slice.

At number 12 she felt him still behind her.

Her body sagged with joy and relief when she heard the familiar voice of her sensei. "This doesn't seem like the best way to treat a lady."

Summoning it from deep within herself she found the strength to stand and began to look around, as best she could, for Kakashi. She had to warn him.

"Kakashi!" She cried, "Don't touch-" She cut off when she felt the cool tip of the scalpel against her throat.

"If you make a sound, I'll cut your throat _bitch_." Riichi whispered into her ear.

His body was pressed painfully against her bloodied back and his other arm had come to circle around her waist to keep her still.

Directly ahead of her Kakashi stepped out of the darkness of the trees and into the clearing.

"The famous copy-nin." Riichi hissed against Sakura's neck.

"Let Sakura go."

Kakashi took a step forwards but stopped when Riichi pressed the tip of the scalpel harder against her neck and fresh blood began to run down her chest.

"I think I've taken quite a liking to her." Riichi smirked, letting his other hand brush against the bottoms of her breast. She shivered uncontrollably from the sensation. "I think I'll keep her."

A low growl sounded to her left, but she didn't dwell on it long as another familiar voice appeared, this time from behind her.

"Let her go." Sasuke commanded, his deep voice chilling in the dark, "Or else this goes straight through your neck."

There was a moment of hesitation then the pressure eased from her throat. She wanted to warn them to stay away from his touch. She opened her mouth again, "Don't let him touch-" but this time Kakashi cut her off.

"I heard you Sakura, don't let him touch us. Naruto get her out of here."

She wanted to scoff at the way he'd dismissed her but then Naruto was kneeling in front of her and undoing the bindings at her feet. His hands cupped her face for a brief instant. His blue eyes roaming her, checking her. Then he leaned to the sides and undid each binding on her hands, catching her when she sagged forwards. His hands gently ran through her hair once and then they flickered away from the clearing.

"You're okay, you're okay, you're okay." He repeated the mantra quietly his mouth moving against her hair as he held her softly, delicately.

She was stunned unsure of where this tenderness had come from. He sat her down on the ground beside Sai, who stood monitoring the surrounding.

His eyes drifted down her front staring intently at the still oozing gash down her chest. He clutched her shoulder gently and turned her body away from him. She stared at his face in wonder as he beheld the slashes across her back. His eyes settled fully red, scars visible on his cheeks, claws pressing lightly on the bare skin of her shoulders.

Though she was nude from the waist up she didn't feel uncomfortable as his eyes roved over the rest of her body. She only stared at his face, harsh and beautiful in the night. Finally, he looked down at her and a new expression crossed his face. One she'd never seen before, but that made her wonder…

"Why aren't you healing yourself?" He growled, his voice powerful and rich. She noticed then the canines that glinted inside his mouth.

She didn't answer at first, as she continued to stare, and he stared back. His deep eyes piercing.

"I can't. He blocked my connection to my chakra. That's what he does if he touches you... Don't let him touch you."

There was a deep rumble that resonated from down in his throat and she finally noticed that he hadn't let her go. His clawed fingers still gently caressed her shoulder as he kneeled in front of her. His gaze suddenly felt too hot, too intimate, it was a lover's gaze and she didn't understand why Naruto, of all people, was looking at her like that. She blushed furiously and began to move her arms, despite the pain, to cover herself from him.

That seemed to shake him, and he suddenly looked away, "Here take this."

He passed her his jacket and with trembling hands she placed it over her shoulders.

When he looked back at her his face was controlled again. Cupping both her cheeks in his hands he forced her to stare deeply into his blue eyes.

"You're safe now." His voice was like velvet, and it steadied the shaking of her body. "I won't let anything happen to you."

She believed him.

He stood up and looked to Sai who stood guard over Sakura's crouched form. "I'm going back, watch her."

Sai nodded in confirmation, but Sakura was confused. Fighting through the pain of the open wounds on her back she reached forward and placed a palm on his leg to gather his attention.

"Naruto! You can't go! You're about to be Hokage!"

"I can't not go! It's personal now."

Naruto looked down at her and smiled. It was the most beautiful sight and she nearly gasped from the emotions that threatened to overwhelm her.

"Don't worry Sakura, I'll be alright."

He flickered away, and Sakura was left completely and utterly confused. He had _never_ before smiled like _that_. It had left her breathless.

The adrenaline that had numbed her back was slowly starting to fade. "Do you have a medical kit?" She finally asked Sai, gritting her teeth through the mounting the pain on her sensitive spine.

"Yes." She heard some rustling and then a small pack landed in her lap, "I should have given it to you earlier, my apologies."

With lightly trembling hands she quickly opened the pack and took inventory of what was inside. "It's fine Sai." Some bandages, soldier pills, assorted healing creams. "I think I'll need your help for this."

"What exactly are you going to do?"

"I need my chakra back."

She winced as she placed her arms fully through the arm holes of the jacket, and slowly buttoned up the front to cover her nude torso.

"I'm sure Kakashi has it under control." Sai reassured her as he knelt down beside her.

She gave him a look, and he raised his eyebrows. "I don't care, I'm not just going to sit here and be useless."

Sai pondered her statement for a second and then smiled that creepy smile of his.

"So, will you help me?" She probed, sometimes Sai was still such a weirdo.

"Of course." His eyes crinkled as the smile widened. "I hate people who are useless."

Sakura rolled her eyes and tried to ignore the comment despite the bloody 'W.E.A.K' that was still lightly oozing blood on her lower stomach. Sai meant well, but she didn't think he would ever fully integrate into society.

"Alright so here's what I'm thinking." She started, "The blockage that stops me from using my chakra degrades and disappears over time. If I'm right that means I could be able to speed up that degradation. I'm thinking that if I were to flush my body with chakra from an outside source it would break down the barrier quite quickly. The blockage is likely meant to stop the person from pulling chakra out of their coils and not putting chakra into their coils." Sai nodded absentmindedly as she spoke.

She paused and looked to Sai, willing him to focus, "Since I can't access my chakra, I'm going to need you to channel your chakra into me. This is quite dangerous so if anything goes wrong, say if I pass out, give me a soldier pill. Make sure you crack it in my mouth so that I actually get the contents. Though it's unlikely, if my heart stops you know how to do chest compressions right?"

He nodded.

"Alright."

Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, she willed her body to relax, trying her hardest to ignore the scorching sensations on her back and across her front. This would go much smoother if she was ready to accept the chakra.

After a moment she opened her eyes again and looked at Sai.

"Place your palm right here." She indicated to the center of her stomach, wincing slightly at the movement, "This is where I gather my chakra, so I think this is the best place to target."

He placed his hand on her stomach gently, careful of the fresh wounds that still slowly leaked blood.

"Are you sure about this?" His voice had an air of concern.

She stared into his eyes, determined. "Yes."

He nodded his head in acquisition. Never the one to argue.

"When you start, I think it will be best if you give it as much chakra in one go as you can."

He nodded again and looked down at his palm, brows furrowed in concentration.

Without so much as a warning thick, heavy chakra flooded her body. She jolted and groaned as it sliced through her. His chakra was so dense. She gritted her teeth together as wave after wave of murky chakra began to attack the centre of her body. Sakura struggled to keep her eyes open as she looked at Sai, forehead furrowed in concentration.

When she couldn't stop a moan from slipping past her lips he looked up and started to take his hand away. She grabbed it and pressed it hard to her stomach. Hissing through her teeth, "Don't… stop."

He nodded and a small drop of sweat rolled down his forehead.

"I feel… my chakra is close." She groaned again but then couldn't help but close her eyes and fall over onto the ground as the chakra doubled in intensity. A shrill sound filled the air for a second before her mind went blank, and darkness covered her gaze.

Shooting up, she blinked hazily at the outline of Sai hovering beside her on the ground.

"Did I pass out?" Sakura asked, groggy.

"Yes, you screamed and then passed out. Only for a couple of seconds though."

She sighed in relief and then looked internally to her chakra. Tentatively she touched her coils and they responded in kind.

The block was completely gone.

Seconds later her skin was knitting together, closing the wounds on her front, back and neck. Sai watched in fascination as the cut along her jaw disappeared and was replaced with smooth skin.

"It worked." He breathed, and she nodded.

Leaning against the nearby tree she shakily got to her feet. Sai's chakra was still saturated inside her body and she needed a bit of time to filter it out. Taking a deep breath, she exhaled and thick black air coiled out from between her lips.

Flexing her hands and rolling her neck she looked to Sai who stood back off to the side, neutral expression over his face. A quick nod and seconds later they were racing through the trees back towards the clearing. When they reached the area, she was shocked.

Riichi had always boasted that he was good, really good, but she didn't really grasp how good until she reached the clearing. It made her feel slightly better to know she hadn't been completely outmanoeuvered by an average shinobi who just happened to get lucky. Nevertheless, her heart caught in her throat as she beheld the destroyed clearing.

Kakashi stood off to the side, one hand pressing into his shoulder to staunch the blood running down his arm. His sharingan eye was closed and twin thin red lines of blood leaked out the sides, smearing near the side of his mouth.

Sasuke fared better, with a thin shallow cut along his cheek and a sheen of sweat matting his hair to his forehead. Both his eyes were open, sharingan still flared to life.

Yet it was Naruto that startled her the most. He was kneeling on the ground only 10 feet away from Riichi. He was bleeding heavily from a wound on his forehead. Shakenly his hand crept up to his face to wipe away the blood pooling around his eyes, blurring his sight. From the distance Sakura could tell that he was angry, trembling with rage.

"Naruto." His name slipped out of her lips barely a whisper in the air, yet, he turned towards her anyways, his hair whirling across his face blocking his gaze for a second.

"Sakura." He said her name like a prayer and she didn't know how to feel. The emotions accompanying that gaze were not something she wanted to confront.

As though he could sense her inner turmoil, the warmth in his blue eyes grew cold and a slight frown graced his bloodied forehead. Reaching back up to wipe away the blood from his eyes he spoke sternly, expecting her to follow the command.

"We're handling it… Get out of here!"

She glared back, mouth twisted into a grimace, "No."

She stepped forward into the clearing turning fully towards Riichi. He stood to the side casually. His keen eyes darted between the two of them intelligence glimmering in them.

Relaxing her hands at her sides and bending her knees slightly to take a fighting stance she sneered at Riichi, "You're done with them…" Her jade eyes twinkled in the moonlight and her shoulders straightened, "I'm your opponent now."

He stared blankly for a split second before his lips thinned into a wide grinning smile.

"Yes."

Easing his weight equally across both feet, Sakura watched carefully as he adjusted his stance.

"Sakura!" Naruto barked.

She glanced over at him as he struggled to his feet noticing for the first time the bleeding cuts littering his legs. "Listen to me! You need to leave."

"No!" She practically snarled, "This is my fight! Sasuke cover me. Sai get Kakashi and Naruto out of here."

Sai, always the rule follower, hesitated before she saw Kakashi nod slightly from the corner of her eye. Rushing forwards, Sai supported Naruto as he hustled him back out of the clearing, Kakashi splitting off to meet them at the edge of the tree line.

Internally sighing Sakura was glad they were out of the way. Neither of their injuries were life threatening. She'd been concerned at first glance but had quickly realized they were superficial wounds.

Naruto's head wound looked a lot worse than it was simply because of the tendency of head wounds to bleed a lot. Over the course of their short conversation Sakura had also noticed that Kakashi's shoulder wound had already stopped bleeding.

From what she could deduce from the fight Naruto had gotten distracted and had allowed himself to be touched. Once he'd been touched, he'd likely started to attack Riichi with hand to hand. Riichi still held a kunai in his left hand and Sakura could faintly see the blood coating the blade which explained all the cuts covering Naruto's body. He'd never been the best at close range combat.

Otherwise, Kakashi's wound looked like it was from a thrown weapon. Though still a formidable foe, Kakashi was getting older and no longer in his prime. Especially using his sharingan, he couldn't sustain the weapon as long as he used to, and he'd probably just exhausted its limit.

The cut on Sasuke's cheek was likely from pure luck.

The more Sakura analyzed the more she realized that her team was actually fairing quite well. The sweat marks drenching the front of Riichi's shirt made her also realize she might have overestimated his abilities.

He looked exhausted. She noticed the twitching muscles around his eyes and along his arms indicating strain. She noticed the slight quivering of his thighs as he held the defensive position.

Though her mind wanted to take these signs and adjust her plan, she forced herself to treat him as though he was fully rested. She refused to allow herself to make the same mistake of underestimating him.

Without warning she allowed her chakra to rush to the soles of her feet. The ground beneath cracked a second before she flew forwards eyes locked with Riichi's whose widened in surprise. He jumped up to move away from her out of instinct, but her goal had never been to hit him. She landed, fist first, into the ground 10 feet from where he'd been standing, just as he landed now 20 feet away.

No matter.

The ground exploded in the clearing expanding further into the forest. Trees splinted apart in the distance falling to the ground in a boom that resonated even kilometers away.

Riichi was laying in the ground between two boulders. His eyes were wide and sweat actively poured down his face. He struggled with his ankle, it was jammed in the ground between two upturned rocks, with a grunt he dislodged it and struggled to his feet. Yet he couldn't mask the pain that streaked across his face when he tried to put weight on the foot.

Sakura stole a quick glance down, definitely sprained perhaps even broken.

Sasuke landed gracefully beside her, his feet soundless against the ground, "Not holding back, I see." There was no reproach in his tone, just curiosity and a bit of amusement.

She stared down Riichi as he gulped down air like a downing fish.

"I know you were just playing with him, but I don't play." She glared, her hatred for this man surprising her, and he glared back. "He's dead."

Riichi had the decency to swallow shallowly at her declaration before he turned sharply and bolted for the treeline, now noticeably further away. He scrambled over large chunks of ground, limping slightly.

"Oh no you don't." She whispered venomously and began racing through hand signs.

Slamming her hands into the ground a large wall of earth began to rise above the terrain. Riichi stumbled when he saw it soaring above his head and turned slightly to go around it before he realized the wall was surging from everywhere.

In a large ring, Sakura had completely enclosed the clearing around them.

Turning Riichi trembled as he finally beheld the woman that he'd heard about. Finally, he realized how over his head he was and how lucky he'd been to even incapacitate her twice.

She smiled almost sweetly as she beheld his fear of her.

"You're not going anywhere."

Sakura channeled chakra to her hands allowing it to seep out of her skin and saturate the air just above her fingers. She concentrated it slowly allowing the tension to build and the fear to heighten around Riichi. Molding it, she channeled the chakra to form two long tips extending off her fingers by at least 2 feet. Extending her twin chakra swords to her sides she crouched digging her heals into the ground.

"Let's begin."

She sprang forwards taking a leaping jump at Riichi, swinging her arms in wide arcs as she sliced and twirled around him. Never letting him within arm's length while she applied thin oozing cuts all over his body.

He fought back, blocking blows, and lunging forwards to try and touch her. But she was too fast, and he was injured.

It wasn't long before he made a mistake, a small trip over a piece of upturned earth. Riichi managed to catch himself before he fell to the ground but was unable to block the sweep of the glowing blue chakra blade as it sliced through his abdomen. Screaming he fell to the ground hands cradling his stomach as blood sprayed through his fingers, drenching the dirt in seconds.

Sakura approached the downed man slowly, allowing him time to understand the severity of the situation. For every step she took his trembling and groaning grew, like music to her ears. She crouched in front of him, arm's length away, and finally spoke.

"Look at me." The words were soft, barely above a whisper, but cold as ice.

Riichi started to cry.

"Minutes ago, you were reveling in my pain." She continued slowly, she wanted him to hear her, every single word she uttered. "How does it feel? Do you enjoy your own pain?"

The night was silent, safe for the haggard breathing of the dying man in front of her, whose guts continued to leak out between his trembling fingers.

"Answer me."

He only groaned louder in response. Sniffling like a small child as fat tears began to run down his bloodied face.

"ANSWER ME." She screamed.

The words reverberated across the forest, and birds took to flight on the other side of the wall she'd created.

Her anger surprised even her. Why did this man, bother her so much? How was he able to bring out the vicious monster she often tried keep sheltered deep inside of her?

She shivered absently and slowly the haze of anger that had clouded her mind began to dissipate.

"I-I don't…" Riishi stumbled, gritting the words out like a hiss. "But it looks li-i-ke _you_ … do."

This time he smiled at her, his teeth stained red with blood, before he started to laugh.

The sound was disturbing. She could hear the gurgle of blood in his throat while he began to heave blood, still snickering like a hyena.

Sakura stood up abruptly.

 _What had she been thinking?_

This is not who she was. She wasn't a cold-blooded killer set on only causing suffering. She'd been planning on torturing him, making him feel all the pain she was sure he'd caused throughout his life. Yet, the more she thought about it the more she realized…

 _She didn't want to be like him._

Sakura looked down at Riichi dispassionately and with a single swing of her chakra swords his head left his shoulders.

She glared at the spot where his head used to be as blood sprayed out from the artery splattering her shoes. She'd almost stooped down to his level. She'd almost completely lost control.

Sighing she turned away from the still twitching body of her torturer. Running through some hand signs she pressed her palms back down against a dry piece of earth and allowed the circular wall she'd created to recede back into the ground.

"That was anti-climactic." Sasuke muttered as he approached her crutched position.

Standing Sakura didn't turn back in his direction, refusing to look at the dead headless man. Instead she started to walk to the tree line, where she'd seen the rest of the team go. Calling over her shoulder she said to Sasuke, "You'll burn him for me, won't you?"

She didn't bother to wait for his reply before she leapt up into the trees.

* * *

The team ran back to Konoha in mostly silence. Sakura made an effort to not look at Naruto as she had the distinct feeling that their relationship had somehow shifted in the time she'd been gone from the village. As though sensing her inter-turmoil, Naruto was unusually silent.

Internally Sakura was a disaster. Not only was she attempting to sort through her recent traumatic experience, but she was also completely blindsided by the way Naruto had looked at her and continued to look at her. Even now when he thought she wasn't looking she would see his gaze turn to her and soften in a manner it had never done before.

When they camped at night Sakura didn't sleep, though she tried she awoke shivering and heaving up the leftovers of her dinner. Her mind flashing dangerous images of Naruto, Sasuke, Sai, and Kakashi strung out like she'd been, bathed in blood, while Riishi laughed gleefully at her tear-stricken figure lying helplessly on the ground. Her body riddled with the bleeding letters of the word 'WEAK'.

Naruto was awake in an instant hovering behind her and rubbing slow circles across her back. Slowly Sakura relaxed into his touch, taking slow deep breaths to calm the shaking that threatened to overtake her body. Naruto hummed softly as she gradually overcame her nightmare.

She knew the others were probably awake too and she silently thanked them for allowing her to keep some shred of dignity at how deeply the encounter had affected her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" His voice was soft and low, whispered into her ear, the first they'd spoken to each other since she'd chased him away from her fight with Riishi.

Naruto handed her his canteen of water and she greedily used it to wash the acidic bile taste away.

Sighing she answered just as quietly, "I'm not ready."

He took back the canteen and then gently positioned her back in her sleeping bag before moving his own right beside.

"When you are… I'm here for you." Curling his arm around her, he pulled her closer and mumbled into her hair, "Always."

His arms were comforting and familiar and she instantly felt safer. No matter what was happening between them she always knew that Naruto would be there for her. She couldn't help the 'I know' from leaving her lips as she felt his breathing slow behind her.

In the morning, things between them were back to silence and by the golden mid-day light they were back at Konoha.

Before she was able to enter the Hokage building Naruto pulled her back to him, "We need to talk."

His eyebrows were furrowed as he watched the others disappear through the doors of the building.

Sighing she placed a light hand on her hip before turning to face him, "I know. But, can we talk later?"

Naruto smiled, that tender, heart-warming smile and nodded, before he pulled her forward into the building.

* * *

The sun had just crested the horizon setting the whole sky ablaze with colours of soft pink and deep purple when the knock Sakura had been expecting sounded at her door.

"Come in." She called as she fiddled around the kitchen preparing dinner.

Naruto appeared in the room moments later, his hair hung across his forehead dark and wet.

"Is it raining outside?" She asked pleasantly, noting the thick drops of water that fell across his face from his hair.

Running his hand through his hair, he grinned sheepishly, "Eh… no? Sorry, I just showered."

"Well you didn't dry off properly."

Grinning she threw him a small hand towel, which he ran through his hair once before placing it on the counter top.

"Sakura."

She looked up from the pot she was stirring and noticed he'd lost his smile. Instead he stared at her intently, deeply. She looked away quickly.

"I know." She whispered. "Can we eat first? I made enough for you. I knew you'd come around dinner time."

"I don't think you know what I'm here to say," He said it coldly and she felt the seriousness of the conversion settle heavily in the air, "…but yes, let's eat first."

They ate in silence. She kept stealing glances at him, trying to get a clue about the direction their _talk_ would go, but his face was blank. He spent the entire dinner staring absentmindedly at his meal while he slowly picked away at the plate.

Finally, she put down her utensils. Tired of watching him push around the food. Clearly whatever he wanted to say about their relationship about was serious enough to keep him from eating.

"Okay. What's wrong." She exclaimed, turning to face him. "You've been looking at me differently since you came to rescue me.

"Nothing's wrong." Naruto muttered lowering his hands into his lap before clenching his fists tightly. "I'm just not sure how to tell you this."

"Just come on out with it."

He mumbled something so soft she didn't hear before he turned around to face away from her. His shoulder muscles tense and bulging beneath his shirt.

"What was that? I didn't quite hear?"

She rolled her eyes at his obvious hesitation. _Of all the times he chooses to be quiet, could he just speak up?_

Raising his head Naruto took a deep breath before he spoke clearly into the utterly silent room, "My ANBU code name was Tiger."

"I'm sorry… … _What_?" Her words were but a whisper in the air.

He got up from his seat and walked forwards to lean against the wall. His head was bowed as though in shame of the words he spoke. Afraid of what she might say.

"I'm Tiger…" He said again, his deep voice vibrating through her body as the words settled into her mind. "…and you're Falcon."

 _He's_ _Tiger?_

This was all too much.

She collapsed to the floor. Her mind a chaotic wheel as she attempted to process what this could mean. What it could mean that Tiger _was_ Naruto.

"Sakura!" Naruto shouted as he ran up to her as she huddled on the floor, her head shaking, hands gripped painfully in her lap.

He kneeled in front of her and took her hand in his own. His fingers traced small circles across her palms. While her mind flashed through two years' worth of memories finally realizing the deep similarities she'd noticed between Naruto and Tiger hadn't been her imagination.

This was all too much.

They had the _same_ mannerisms.

The _same_ jawline.

The _**same**_ personality.

Now that she knew where to look, she found the similarities everywhere. They smelled the same; lemongrass and blue cypress. They fought the same was; laughed the same way; spoke the same way. She felt like the blindfold that had been placed in front of her eyes had just been lifted.

This was all too much.

Tiger was Naruto.

It made so much sense. Naruto was just announced as next Hokage, a job that required, as Tiger had put it ' _full-time village visibility'_.

She shivered as she brought her finger-tips to her trembling lips. Lightly touching. She'd kissed Tiger… _Naruto_. They'd had _sex._

This was all too much.

Her mind continued to spin as she processed the implications of the discovery Naruto had laid at her feet. She slowly lifted her head and found herself staring into deep blue pool that shimmered with bursting emotion.

"Naruto" The name a whisper in the air barely escaping her slightly parted lips.

 _How long had he known?_

She wanted to ask but that seemed hardly important in the face of such an immense confession.

"I love you, Sakura."

She gazed upon his face, gushing with emotion. He seemed afraid, his eyebrows were pulled tight and his lips trembled. He was afraid of her.

No, not of her. Of what she would say.

This was all too much.

The panic began to rise in her mind. Suddenly the air seemed too thick, too hard to breathe. Naruto's fingers caressing her hands began to burn, leaving scalding skin behind. She didn't know what to think, what to say. They couldn't be together. What was going on?

This was all too much.

The shaking in her fingers began to travel up her arms. Her breathing shallowed and accelerated; she could hear herself heaving in the quiet room. Naruto's eyebrows turned downwards, and his face pinched together in a deep scowl, concern crossing his beautiful eyes. His fingers tightened on her skin.

It was all too much.

She snapped.

Quick as a cat, she snatched her arms away from him, clutching them against her chest. She scrambled back till her back hit the wall behind her and she sprung up. Seconds later she was leaning against the closed bathroom door as she breathed frantically, her hands twisted in her lap.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

"Sakura?" A soft voice spoke up from outside the room and she spun expecting the door to burst open. "Are you okay?"

She counted the tiles on the wall, using each number to time her breaths as she slowly wound herself back down to earth.

One.

Two. Three.

She heard cloth rubbing the otherside of the door as Naruto slid down to rest against the door outside the bathroom. Four. Five.

Her breathing slowed, and she leaned her head back against the hard wood door behind her. Six. Naruto was Tiger. Seven. Naruto was Hokage. Eight. Naruto loved her. Nine. She loved Naruto. Ten. She felt fingers reach across under the door and her own palm stretched down to touch the tips. Eleven. She loved Naruto. Twelve.

Suddenly, everything else seemed inconsequential. She loved Naruto and he loved her. It was as simple as that. He wasn't a stranger. Tiger was Naruto. Her Naruto, she knew him.

Somehow, she'd have expected the thought that Tiger was Naruto to seem weird, but it didn't. In fact, she felt even more sure of her feelings. Everything she knew about and loved about Tiger, was a part of Naruto. Everything she knew and loved about Naruto was a part of Tiger.

Steeling her insides as the butterflies began to flitter about, she opened the door.

He stood there, golden hair still damp hanging limply across his tanned skin, dark shirt and pant fitting snugly against his body. Gods he was handsome. He looked down at his feet, his posture betraying his nerves, as he played with his hands. He looked up briefly blue eyes glittering with hope.

She smiled softly, he was so mindful of her reaction, so worried for her. Stepping forwards she took one of his hands in her own and he jerked up in surprise.

"I'm sorry." She looked down, blush covering her cheeks, "I was just a little surprised."

"Sakura! Don't be sorry!" His hands coming up to brush back her hair and cup her face, "I wish there had been an easier way to tell you."

She frowned despite herself, looking up into his swirling eyes, "How long have you known?"

"Tsunade told me, before we left to rescue you."

"Ah…" She chewed her bottom lip and twiddled her fingers together.

"I'm sorry, I came on too strong." He took his hands away to scratch the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I guess I assumed you would reciprocate…"

She smiled sadly as he looked away, not missing the hurt that flashed in his eyes.

"Naruto."

He looked down, confusion clouding his features as he noticed the smile gracing her lips.

"I love you too."

The joy that erupted in his face was blinding and she couldn't help but grin in response. Smiling, he reached forwards and lifted her up in the air, laughing. His happiness was intoxicating, and she found her own laughter bubbling up alongside his as he twirled her around in her living room.

Instinctively she wrapped her legs around his waist, bringing her closer to his body. They gazed at one another, his beautiful blue eyes peering into her own green ones, and then they were kissing.

First, it was passionate and frantic. Lips crashing together, tongue sliding out and into mouths, across soft lips. Yet, they were in no rush and slowly the kiss turned leisurely, deep and wistful. Soft mouths caressing and exploring.

He carried her to her bedroom, never once breaking the kiss, his hands supporting her bottom, squeezing lightly. Her hands were tangled in his damp hair while he nipped at her bottom lip, slowly letting his tongue lightly taste the inside of her open mouth.

Softly he placed her down on the bed, kissing her deeply once more, their tongues twisting in an intricate dance.

He rose back up and she saw uncertainty in his eyes as she looked up at him, while she lay sprawled on the bed.

"What's wrong Naruto?" She asked her voice breathy.

"Are you sure you want this? Once we do this we can't go back."

Shuffling to her knees she reached up and took his hand in her own forcing him to look down at her, look into her eyes.

"I want you. Just like I did three weeks ago."

"I know, but this time it's different." He looked away eyes shrouded by his unruly hair.

"You're the same person. Naruto and Tiger are the same person. I love you all the same, just like I want you all the same." He looked back at her while she spoke, his eyes dark misty with emotion, "Make love to me Naruto."

His eyes flashed red and she smirked as he threw off his shirt, exposing an expansive tanned chest. Crawling backwards on the bed she continued to smile devilishly as he stalked her backwards across the mattress until her back hit the headboard.

He smiled wickedly and began pressing light kisses up her throat until he reached her ear and whispered huskily, "With pleasure."

He began by slowly peeling off her clothes. With every inch of skin he revealed he left a trail of open-mouthed kisses. She shivered in pleasure as he kissed the insides of her thighs, leaving little nips on the pale skin.

When she was left in only her undergarments, he stood up off the bed and as she slowly helped him out of his pants. Kissing her own line down his body.

Her body was burning, skin hyper-sensitive to his touch as he laid her back down on the bed. He settled above her and she found herself loving the weight of him as he pressed himself up against her.

He kissed her neck, tongue lapping out, causing shivers to grace her skin. She wrapped her legs around his hips allowing him to settle fully against her and she couldn't help but whimper from the sweet pressure despite the thin clothing still separating them.

He kissed her again, his sweet tongue twisting along with her own before he pressed into her once again and he lapped up the moan she made into his mouth. His teeth captured her bottom lip as her head fell back against the pillow. Biting softly, he pressed up against her again and she felt the moan fly out from her lips as he groaned softly.

He captured her lips into another deep kiss. Before he began to kiss down the side of her neck and above her breasts. He passed a soft hand across her chest and she bit her lip to keep the groan from escaping. Reaching behind her back, he unclipped her bra exposing her bare skin to cool bedroom air. This time when his hands passed across her breast moaned loudly.

While his one hand gently played her tight breasts, his other drifted lower to the juncture between her thighs. She was ready for him and when he slipped under her underwear her back arched and her lips parted in an open-mouthed 'O'. His fingers teased her body and his lips kissed her deeply capturing the sounds she continued to allow to escape from her with increasing frequency.

When she finally thought she couldn't take the taunting any longer he removed his wicked fingers. Standing on shaking legs she shimmed out of her underwear while he dropped his own. His blue eyes roving across her naked body, stimulating the burning bonfire that flared in her lower stomach.

"I love you." His voice was deep and husky, his lips swollen.

She stepped forwards and placed a light hand across his hard stomach. Gazing up into his eyes she licked her own red lips, "I love you."

Then they were on the bed his naked body pressing hotly against her own, his lips moving languidly against her own, tongue tangling in her own. With a slight shift, he was pressing against her, her legs wrapped up around his waist hooking at her ankles. Her hands bunched in his thick beautiful hair.

He kissed the side of her throat, his breath hot against her neck. Slowly he entered her, until he was completely buried, chest pressed against chest.

Gently he moved, gone was the frantic rush of their last encounter. Instead, he moved with a purpose, but with the delicacy of painter putting the finishing touches on his masterpiece. The heat pooled down her body and rose in time with his thrusts. Building with each one, deeper and faster than the one before.

He was up on his elbows before long, gazing down at her as her soft lips parted in moan after moan, her breasts bouncing with the motion. His deep gaze holding her own eyes captured as he thrust into her again and again.

Leaning to the side he grabbed one of her legs and hoisted it higher up against his body. His hand snaked forwards and pinched one of her breasts and she arched into the sensation. Suddenly the pleasure was threefold. His arm snacked back to hold her back in that position. The burning that coiled between her thighs rubbed with each thrust against his lower stomach, he reached deeper inside of her, brushing against that sweet spot she always had trouble finding herself.

Her cries rose to a crescendo as he pumped into her with a new ferocity. His lips brushing softly against her collar bone. He held her up keeping her still as she continued to arch into his thrusts.

His body was hers, her body his. The bonfire turned to a molten pool of lava and she arched deeper searching for more, more, so she could explode. He groaned into her neck, biting her skin harshly, leaving deep red marks. She spiralled down, deep into the heat, her mind gone, a slave to the sensation. Nothing in the world compared to him and she cried his name with abandon as she exploded outwards.

He crashed his lips to hers, holding her tight as he felt himself draw pleasure from her own. His trusts turned maddened and his breaths hard as he exploded seconds after her.

"I love you so much." He groaned against her lips.

She kissed him back fevered. Hands tight, pulling his hair to pull him closer. "I love you too."

They lay connected arms tightly wrapped around one another for a long moment. His breath fanning against her neck, her legs still circling his hips.

Naruto caressed her skin, his fingers trailing light patterns across her arm. She sighed contently in his arms nuzzling against his chest.

"We can make this work, right?" Sakura asked, her voice gentle.

"Yes, this will work."

She turned to look at him, propping herself up on her elbows. His face was beautiful, clean lines, strong jaw, and golden thick hair. She stared gaze captured by his irises and she wondered then how she had missed this. How she had not been able to make the connection that day in the locker-room?

There was no mistaking it, he had the most dazzling blue eyes.

* * *

The End


End file.
